


The Claim

by thatwriterlady



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alpha Dean, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Angst, Beta Charlie Bradbury, Beta Sam Winchester, Cas does not get raped, Castiel & Charlie Bradbury Friendship, Castiel and Sam Winchester friendship, Challenge of claim, Charlie Bradbury & Dean Winchester Friendship, Charlie Bradbury & Sam Winchester Friendship, Claiming, Dean wants to make things right for Omegas everywhere, Don't worry, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, M/M, Mating, Mating Bond, Mating laws, Mention of Past Abuse, Mention of past relationship between Dean Winchester and Lisa Braeden, Mention of past relationship between Sam Winchester and Lucifer, Mpreg, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-Con, Omega Castiel, Omegas are considered to be second class citizens, Protective Dean Winchester, Smut, Social discord, Stalking, Thriller, True Mates, True mate bonds, Very minor characters will die, trigger warnings apply
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-24
Updated: 2016-06-05
Packaged: 2018-04-28 05:17:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 65
Words: 224,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5079340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatwriterlady/pseuds/thatwriterlady
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a world where Omegas are treated as worse than even second class citizens, Cas has managed to survive living in "The District". The District is where all umated Omegas, and those without guardians are sent to live.  It's a slum where they are easily forgotten.  Crime and prostitution abound there.  After being tossed out in his first heat, Cas is taken in by a great aunt who lived just long enough for him to secure a teaching degree.  After her death he was sent to The District.  He avoids aggressive Alphas that would force him into prostitution or claim him against his will.  At 40, he doubts he'll ever find his true mate.  </p><p>Dean is a successful Alpha unlike most others.  He respects everyone, but he has held out for years in hopes of finding his true mate.  By age 37 he has all but given up, so when he meets a pretty Beta while out shopping and she asks him out, he says yes.  He just wants to be happy for once in his life.</p><p>When their paths cross, they realize they've finally found their true mate, but someone else says they have a claim on Cas, and things are about to get messy.  In order to save Cas once and for all, Dean has to save all Omegas.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. To Deny an Alpha

**Author's Note:**

> Cas is barely surviving living in "The District". He can barely pay his bills as it is, and one of the major reasons why he has managed to avoid aggressive Alphas that would force him into submission against his will is because he has a car. As sillyas that sounds, by not walking to and from places he has drastically reduced his chances of being attacked. When he refuses the advances of one particularly aggressive Alpha, he wakes one morning to find that his car has been all but destroyed. Despondent, he goes searching for a second part time job to be able to cover the cost of repairs on his car. Unfortunately Omegas are seen as useless by most of society, as good for nothing but breeding and pumping out pups, so time and again he is turned down for jobs. Until he walks into The Roadhouse. The owner, a Beta named Ellen takes pity on the poor, starving Omega and offers him a job waiting tables which he is extremely grateful for. 
> 
> Dean isn't exactly lonely, but he has reached a point in his life where he lost hope of ever meeting his true mate. He has dated Betas for years but none ever smelled right, and most just wanted him for his money. All he has ever wanted was his true mate, but since he doubts that will ever happen he decides to open himself up to the possibility that he can find someone else who's scent is pleasant and he can get along with. He meets Cassie one afternoon while shopping. She's beautiful, friendly, and smells nice, so he asks her out. He decides to take her out to dinner at The Roadhouse, a place owned by his aunt.
> 
> Cas is the server that night, and very quickly Dean realizes that he has just caught the scent of his true mate, but when Cas doesn't return to the table again, he panics and goes looking for him. 
> 
> Cas was devastated. He had finally, after all these years finally found his true mate, a rare enough feat in itself, and the Alpha was already mated. Or at least that's what Cas believes. When the Alpha shows up on his doorstep that night, he is shocked. Will his true mate be everything he ever hoped for or will he be a monster like the other Alphas that have tried for years to get at him?

[](http://www.pizap.com/image/707476471pizapw1443725239.jpg)  
[](http://www.pizap.com/u/707476471) on [piZap.com](http://www.pizap.com)

“Shit!” 

Cas looked at the damage that had been done to his car and groaned loudly.

“What the hell am I supposed to do now?!”

There was no way he could drive it. The windshield had been smashed, tires slashed, and when he lifted the already open hood he could clearly see things had been removed. Some had even been violently torn out. He was easily looking at several hundred dollars’ worth of damage, and he didn’t have a single penny to spare to fix it. Out of anger he kicked the tire, immediately regretting it when the shock flared through his foot making his toes ache. He checked his watch. Great, now he was going to be late to work, and all because he refused another Alpha’s advances. Stupid knotheads. If he jogged he would only be a few minutes late. The downside to that was that he would sweat, and sweating drew unwanted attention. It was something he was just going to have to risk.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Dean, we’re out of everything, do you want me to run to the store?” Sam yelled from the kitchen.

Dean was kicked back in his room reading and he put the book down.

“Don’t you have class in an hour?" he yelled back.

“Yeah, I do. I can go after though.”

“Nah, I’ll just go. I’ve got the shop covered today, got nothing better to do.” Dean got up and stretched. He preferred to do the shopping anyway. If he went to the store he didn’t have to put up with a month of salads which is all Sam would have bought. He went out to the kitchen where his brother was rooting around in the fridge making a list.

“Give me your list and I’ll go this afternoon," he said.

“Sure. Almost done.” Sam replied. He jotted down a few more things before handing the list over.

“Get to school. I’ll see you for dinner, ok?”

“Yeah, see you later man.” Sam grabbed his bookbag on his way out the door. Once he was gone Dean looked the list over. He scribbled a few more things on it before heading to his room for his boots. Once they were on he headed out. His grocery shopping would contain a lot less greenery, that was for sure!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The store was pretty empty for the middle of the day on a Thursday and Dean hummed softly to himself as he went about his shopping. He got Sam’s vegetables but he also got twice as much meat. He was an Alpha after all, he couldn’t live on plants alone. He was checking the bread shelf for the brand Sam had requested when a faint floral scent hit him. It was definitely Beta but he was surprised to find that it wasn’t completely repulsive. Usually Betas smelled awful to him. He sniffed the air, turning as he did so until he spotted the girl at the end of the aisle. She was attractive with dark, curly hair and beautiful caramel skin. She lifted her head, clearly catching his scent and when she looked his way he offered a friendly smile. To his surprise she turned and started in his direction. When she reached him she smiled brightly.

“Hi there.”

“Hi yourself.” 

“What’s your name?” She was glancing at his neck. He realized she was looking for a mating mark.

“Dean. You?”

“Cassie.” 

She was not mated, there were no other scents on her, but he clearly carried his brother’s scent.

“You’re not mated?" she asked.

“No, I’m not. Haven’t found the right person yet.” He cocked an eyebrow and gave his most winning smile, the one that reeled Betas in. 

“You use that line often?" she asked with a laugh. He chuckled and shrugged.

“It’s the truth.”

“I’m surprised a good looking guy like you hasn’t found your Omega yet," she said.

His smile faltered. It wasn’t like he hadn’t looked. Hell, he’d looked most of his life, but he doubted at almost forty that he was going to find his true mate now. Now he just wanted to find someone worth settling down with, maybe having a couple of kids. 

“If I was meant to find them, I would have met them by now," he said.

There was sympathy in her eyes and he hated when people felt sorry for him. This wasn’t a reason for people to feel sorry for him.

“I have to finish my shopping.” He turned to leave but a warm hand on his arm stopped him.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you. Would…would you like to go out sometime?" she asked.

Dean considered it for a moment. Betas weren’t supposed to do the asking, Alphas were, but then again he liked feisty women. Feisty men too.

“Yeah, that would be nice. How about Saturday? I know a great place," he told her.

She smiled and nodded. “Sure.”

They exchanged numbers and then parted ways to finish their shopping. He got everything on the list, plus a few extras. He hummed the whole car ride home. For the first time in months, he had a date.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Please, I don’t make enough at my primary job to afford the repairs that need to be done on my car. I’m barely making ends meet now. If I could just pick up a few hours here I can start to get the repairs done. I waited tables in college so I have the experience.” 

He was practically begging but he didn’t care. Betas usually took some pity on Omegas like him and he was counting on that. He had applied at dozens of other places in the area but was turned away time and again, mostly due to gender biases. As far as they were concerned he wasn’t strong like an Alpha or smart like a Beta so they sent him on his way every time. Their society still saw Omegas as nothing more than breeders. Cas was smart though, and if he wasn’t strong he wouldn’t have lasted as long as he had without being raped or forcibly mated. If he’d gone to one of the whorehouses he was sure he’d have gotten work, but he wasn’t that desperate. At least, not yet. That left Cas where he was now, standing in a bar called The Roadhouse, in front of a stern looking Beta named Ellen, begging for work.

“What exactly happened to your car?" she asked. He’d been hoping she wouldn’t ask this.

“I…denied an Alpha. He tried to take me against my will. He wasn’t my true mate and the man was incredibly sadistic and cruel. When I told him no and refused to let him …mate me, he followed me home and ruined my car. He smashed the windshield in, popped all the tires, and removed some things under the hood that I’m not even sure what they went to. I can get it fixed in bits, but I don’t have the money yet for it.”

She nodded. “I can talk to my nephew about the car, see about getting you a decent rate. He’s a good Alpha, and he doesn’t discriminate either. He’ll work out a price with you. In the meantime I could use some evening help with waiting tables. It’ll be three nights a week to get you started, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. If you hustle we can talk about adding more hours. Sound good?”

“Oh! Yes! Absolutely!” He nodded eagerly.

“Good, be here tomorrow night for your first shift. My daughter, Joanna Beth, she’ll show you the ropes. Be here by seven, alright?”

“Yes ma’am, I’ll be here!” He wanted to hug the woman, he was so thrilled. The money would suck but sometimes the kinder Alphas and Betas left tips, so that would help. He’d sock away every penny he earned until his car was fixed. And maybe if he saved a bit extra he could invest in an alarm too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first week had gone relatively smoothly for Cas and he got the hang of waiting tables very quickly and he’d only been harassed once the second night, so he counted that as a win. He knew it would be different if he had a mate, but he believed in true mates. No Alpha smelled good to him and certainly none had ever treated him with even an iota of respect, so why should he submit? If he ended up dying alone and unmated it would be preferable to being tortured, raped and forced to pump out pups for an Alpha he hated. When he left work that Sunday he hopped on his bike and rode home as quickly as possible. It wasn’t safe for unmated Omegas as it was, and it certainly wasn’t safe for them after dark. 

Cas lived in the Omega district by decree, not by choice. All unmated Omegas without family to claim them ended up there. When he had presented as an Omega at fourteen his father had promptly kicked him out of the house. Without the protection of his family and without an Alpha to mate with he was forced to live in the district. It was a nasty place to be during the day but at night it was even worst. He’d lived here so long now that he knew how to slip in and out without being noticed, and that is what he did now. He walked his bike down the alley behind his building, slipping into the alley way and unlocking the back door. He carried his bike up to his apartment and promptly locked and double locked the door behind him. His apartment was his sanctuary, his safe place, and he treasured it. While the rest of the neighborhood was hell on earth, this was his little slice of heaven. 

Somewhere outside a woman screamed. He went to the window and pulled the heavy curtains back just an inch or so to peer out. Prostitutes filled nearly every corner, men and women desperate to make money to support their families, families they wouldn’t even have if it wasn’t for the profession they were in. It was a vicious cycle and one that he wanted no part of. Those that didn’t work the streets tended to work in the brothels all around the city. There were very few families in this neighborhood, though it was filled to overflowing with children. Cas was one of the few that held a real, solid job. He had put himself through college and though he was still knee deep in debt, he had a good teaching job at the Omega high school. He taught English and History, and he loved it. It just didn’t pay very much. He could hear voices shouting down the street. An Alpha pimp was slapping around a slender woman in a gold dress and impossibly tall heels. Even from here he recognized her as his neighbor Pam, a rather strong willed Omega with three pups of her own that she struggled to provide for. On more than one occasion he had helped by lending her money to keep food in their bellies. He watched nervously as the Alpha forced her down into submission on the ground and took her right there, open on the street. He was absolutely horrified seeing this happen, but the police didn’t come through this neighborhood at night. As he watched Pam was pushed face first into the sidewalk and given a swift kick to the gut before the Alpha walked off. Cas wanted to go to her, to pick her up off the ground and take her back to her apartment, but he couldn’t. He sighed with relief when she got up and staggered back to the building. A few minutes later he heard her apartment door open and then close. She was home, she was safe. He wished the world were different.

Omegas were at the bottom of the gene pool as far as the knotheads running the country were concerned. They took a third of the pay that an Alpha made, they were forced into slums if they were unmated, and they were made to feel less than equal in everything. It wasn’t fair. What angered Cas the most was that Betas everywhere did absolutely nothing to stand up to this oppression. They too were discriminated against, though not quite to the same degree. At least they were allowed to live, shop, work, and dine where they wanted. Cas’ choices were slim. If he’d found his true mate though, things would be quite different. He’d live in a much better neighborhood for starters, and be able to eat more than just the microwaveable meals that were the only things he could afford. But he didn’t want just any Alpha. He wanted his true mate. Every night before he went to bed he said a prayer asking for his true mate to be sent his way. He honestly wasn’t sure how much longer he could last like this.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean picked Cassie up at her apartment and they drove to his aunt’s bar, The Roadhouse. Cassie frowned when they pulled up in front of the building.

“Don’t let the exterior fool you, this place has the best burgers in town.” He gave her a wink before getting out and coming around to her side to open her door for her. She smiled at the gesture.

They walked in and were greeted almost immediately by his cousin Jo.

“Dean! It’s been a while!” She gave him a quick hug before turning to Cassie.

“Your date I presume?”

“You would presume right. Cassie, this is my cousin Jo. Jo, Cassie," he introduced. Jo offered her hand to the woman.

“Nice to meet you.” Jo said.

“Nice to meet you too.” Cassie replied.

“I’ll put you in your usual booth. I’m not your server tonight, the new guy Castiel is, so go easy on him, huh?” Jo said as she showed them to their table.

“I’ll be nice, I always am.” Dean said as he sat down.

“I know, but I’m just letting you know. He’s a bit jumpy, some Alpha grabbed him last weekend and he’s been kind of tense ever since.” Jo lowered her voice as she told him this, glancing around to make sure no one else was within earshot.

“Ah, he’s an Omega then.” Dean concluded.

“Yeah. Sweet guy, really smart. He’s a teacher.” Jo said.

“What the hell is a teacher doing servings tables here?" he wondered.

“Some Alpha ruined his car. I think mom wanted to talk to you about that too, see if you can’t cut the guy a deal. He’s on his bike until he can afford to get the car fixed.”

Dean nodded. “Sure, I’ll talk to your mom and this Cas guy later.”

“Alright then. Here ya go and your server will be out to get your drink order shortly.” She flashed him a bright smile as she set a menu down in front of Cassie. 

“I take it you eat here often enough to not need one?” Cassie asked, holding up her menu.

“I practically grew up in this place. I have the menu memorized," he said with a laugh.

“So what exactly do you do for a living Dean?" she asked as she went over the menu.

“I’m a mechanic, but I own Winchester Auto Repairs. The largest chain in the country," he replied. She eyed him over the top of her menu.

“And you choose to live here? In Lawrence Kansas?”

“It’s where I’m from, and I’m happy here. Besides, I won’t go traipsing all over the country until my brother takes a mate. He needs me," he replied.

“Is your brother an Omega?” 

“No, a Beta. He’s a lawyer but after a failed relationship he came back to stay with me and go back to school. It’s a long story about him and mates, but we have an agreement that he finish this degree first. He’s been dating another Beta, pretty girl, so I think he shot that rule out the window," he laughed.

“They’re pretty serious, huh.”

“Yeah, they are. But he’s almost finished with his degree, and I’m proud of the kid.”

“What about you Dean? What are you looking for? Have you really given up on finding your true mate?" she asked.

“I’m getting older and I figured I would have found them by now if they were anywhere around here. It’s time I get on with my life.” He leaned forward in his seat.

“You smell good Cassie, like flowers. Most Betas smell disgusting to me.”

She smiled, her cheeks flushing slightly. “The same could be said of Alphas. Most smell like rotting meat, or a gym locker room. You…you smell like leather and something else I can’t quite place.”

“Well, I’m glad I don’t smell like rotting meat. Or a locker room for that matter.” He sat back smiling at her. She really was pretty. He wished she was his true mate. He was so tired of looking, of wishing he could find that one person he could connect with in body, mind, and spirit. It was all he had ever wanted, since he was just a boy was to find that one person that made him complete. Since he had first presented as Alpha it had always felt as though a part of himself were missing. It left an aching hole that only seemed to grow bigger as time went on, but he couldn’t wait forever. While not his true mate, Cassie was a beautiful woman and he wondered if he could be happy with her.

“My name is Castiel, can I get you something to drink?”

Dean looked up into the most stunning blue eyes he had ever seen in his life and for just a moment he was struck dumb. The man looking back at him was beautiful.

“Uh, beer, whatever you have on tap," he replied. Castiel nodded and turned to Cassie.

“Iced tea, with lemon please.” 

As the server turned to leave his scent hit Dean. 

The scent of summer, of rain and soft cotton hit him so strongly that he gasped, his eyes flying wide.

“Dean, are you ok?” Cassie reached across the table to touch his hand and he flinched. She pulled her hand back, frowning.

“What’s the matter?” 

He looked at her, blinking repeatedly as he tried to straighten out the thoughts in his brain.

“I’m…fine," he said through a cough. His eyes were searching out the Omega that smelled so amazing but the man wasn’t behind the bar like expected.

Dean had encountered many Omegas in his lifetime but none had ever smelled so good, and none had ever induced such strong emotions in him before. He was suddenly stuck with the need to protect, to keep his Omega safe. That thought alone was shocking. HIS Omega?! Where did THAT come from? He finally spotted the server pouring his beer. The man looked over his shoulder more than once, a sad expression on his face. When he returned to the table he kept his eyes on Cassie.

“Have you decided on what you would like?” His voice was sad and Dean wanted to jump up and pull the man into his arms. 

“I’ll have your Cobb salad, French dressing on the side.” Cassie said. Cas turned to look at Dean, not quite meeting his eyes.

“Uh, a burger, hold the onions. With fries.” Dean practically had to choke out the words.

“Got it. Your order will be out shortly.” As the man hurried off Dean was hit with his scent for a second time. It was the most amazing thing he had ever smelled. Soft and warm, it was comforting. To him it smelled like…

“Home.”

“What did you say?” Cassie asked.

He hadn’t realized he had even said the word out loud. Taking a slow, deep breath in an attempt to clear his sinuses, Cassie’s scent came to him. It no longer smelled like fresh cut flowers though. Now she smelled like every other Beta he had ever encountered. His eyes searched the bar for any sign of the Omega.

“Dean, you with me?” Cassie waved a hand in front of his face.

“Huh? What?”

Cassie looked over her shoulder towards where she had last seen Cas go before looking back at Dean. She had only ever seen one other person respond like this after encountering another person.

“Dean, go talk to him," she said softly.

“What?” He was finally looking at her, though his expression said he thought she was nuts to suggest that.

“I-I think he’s your true mate. You need to go after him," she said. His eyes widened and his head whipped around. The man was nowhere to be seen.

“My true mate?” He echoed the words she had said. They felt right. This man, this Castiel, this was his mate. He needed to find him. 

“He’ll be back in a few with our food and you can talk to him then, ok?” The smile she offered him was bittersweet and he felt awful for her being present when it happened.

“Look, I’m sorry Cassie. We’ll eat and I’ll take you home, ok?” 

“Yeah, sounds good.” Her smile was a little bigger that time, though he still felt bad. This wasn’t supposed to happen and he felt like a jerk for leaving this beautiful woman hanging like this. It was a miracle that she was so understanding. He bounced a leg anxiously under the table. His entire body was thrumming with excitement that he was barely able to tamper down. All he had to do was wait for Castiel to come with their food, but the wait alone was going to feel like an eternity. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I’m sorry Ellen, I hate to do this on a Saturday night but I can’t stay. You can keep my tips, if I even earned any.” Cas was trying hard not to cry as he took his apron off and laid it on his boss’ desk.

“What are you talking about? Are you sick? Did someone touch you inappropriately again? It’s not your fault you know, I’ll go talk to them, kick them out.” She was already getting to her feet but he held out a hand.

“No, it’s…my true mate…he’s….I can’t…” His resolve to keep his composure crumbled and he burst into tears. Ellen came around the desk and pulled him into her arms.

“He’s out there right now?" she asked softly. He nodded.

“And…he has a mate.” 

He nodded again. 

“Oh sweetheart, I’m so sorry. I don’t want to lose you though, you’re a good employee and I care about you. Why don’t you go home for a couple of days, come back Wednesday. What table is the man at? I can see how he is reacting and if he makes a scene we’ll ban him from here, ok?” She ran a hand soothingly down his back as he sniffled and got his tears under control.

“Seventeen. They just ordered but I can’t…”

“It’s alright, I’ll get Joanna Beth to bring them their meal. You go on home now.” 

Cas nodded and wiped at his eyes. Rather than walk through the bar to leave by the front entrance he left through the back door. He unlocked his bike and started the ride home. At least the sun hadn’t set yet and he would get home at a reasonable hour.

He tried to keep his mind on the ride rather than on thoughts of the beautiful man that had been sitting at his table. Or the beautiful woman eating with him. He had seen them touch hands, they were a couple. They were mates. His tears fell unbidden again as he realized that what he had longed for his entire life had been so cruelly flaunted in his face and then yanked away. Life was most certainly not fair.

He slipped into the alley and made his way to his building. He could smell that an Alpha was near and it put him on edge. Grabbing his bike he made his way quietly into the building, quickly climbing the stairs up to his apartment. Once he was inside and the door was double locked he relaxed. He fished a frozen dinner out of the freezer and popped it in the microwave. It was some disgusting version of pot roast and it would most likely taste like dirt but he didn’t care. Ellen let him eat there when he worked, and that was the only time he got good food, but his shift had only just started when he left, so no meal tonight.

The man’s scent seemed to be embedded in Cas’ sinuses and he couldn’t get it out. It was frustrating him to no end so he decided a hot shower was in order. Under the hot water he washed his hair, breathing in the flowery scent and he sighed a little with relief when the Alpha’s scent began to fade a little. His body had betrayed him though, and he could feel the slick dripping down between his legs. His body was longing for the mate it couldn’t have. That brought about a fresh onslaught of tears and he slid down the shower wall, pulling his knees up to his chest as he sobbed. Why did life have to be so damn unfair? Why present him with a true mate so stunningly gorgeous, and then not allow him to have the man? It wasn’t fair! 

When the water turned cold Cas dragged himself out of the shower and dried off with the only towel he owned. He pulled on a worn pair of shorts and a tee shirt before padding back into the kitchen to eat his shitty little dinner. He was always left hungry after them, but there really wasn’t anything he could do about it. There was no money for more food. He ate the food in misery before retiring to his room for the night. He prayed the morning would bring him a new perspective.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Jo came out with their food instead of Cas, Dean panicked.

“Where’s Castiel?" he demanded. Jo startled at the tone of his voice and took a step back.

“He, uh left for the day.” Jo replied. She looked at Cassie who was trying to calm Dean down.

“It’s ok Dean, shhh.” Cassie had one of Dean’s hands pressed between both of hers but he was paying her no attention. His eyes were frantic, staring up at Jo and scaring the poor Beta half to death.

“Mom!” She screamed. She set the food down on the table and grabbed Dean firmly by his shoulders.

“MOM!”

“Girl, what are you-” Ellen stopped short when she saw the look on Dean’s face and the fear on both of the Beta’s faces. A glance at the number on the edge of the table confirmed that the Alpha that was Castiel’s true mate was none other than her nephew Dean. She hurried to the table and grabbed his face between her hands.

“Dean, look at me," she said firmly. He lifted his eyes to meet hers. 

“You’re going to listen to me right now, you hear?”

He swallowed and nodded, some of the frantic terror in his eyes starting to dissipate.

“Who is this young lady here with you?” She nodded towards Cassie.

“Cassie. It’s-it’s our first date.” He swallowed thickly and tried to glance over at the Beta sitting across from him but Ellen still held his head firmly between her hands. She leaned in and scented him. He growled but she growled right back.

“Don’t you try that Alpha crap with me boy. I needed to be sure. She’s not your mate, is she.”

“No, she’s not," he replied through gritted teeth.

“Castiel saw her with you and thought she was your mate. He left because he waited his entire life for you, and then saw you with her. I don’t think he stopped to realize you don’t even smell mated. He saw you touching or something and jumped to conclusions. That poor boy went home devastated.” Ellen told him. His eyes widened, that fear rising up again. She held him firmly and got right in his face.

“You are going to calm down right here, right now, you’re making a scene. Do. You. Understand. Me?”

He let out a choked sob and nodded. She released her grip and he took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. His scent was changing gradually. It had been thick with fear and agitation but he was calming down. He was still tense though.

“Where can I find him? Please Ellen, I need to find him.” He pulled out of Cassie’s grasp to grab Ellen’s hand in both of his. “Please.”

She ran a hand through his hair and nodded. “Come with me.”

Dean glanced at Cassie who smiled and nodded.

“I’m sorry hon.” He told her.

“It’s ok, go on," she told him. He turned and ran after Ellen who had disappeared into the back. He followed her scent to her office.

“He lives in the Omega District. I was, ironically, going to ask you if you could fix his car up for him. An Alpha trashed it because he rejected the man. Poor guy waited his entire life for you, you know that? You need to go to his place, make sure he’s ok, and explain what’s going on with your date out there. And don’t worry about her, I’ll get her home.” Ellen was ruffling through papers on her desk, trying to find the application Cas had filled out. 

“Ah ha!” She cried when she found it. She jotted the address down on a slip of paper but didn’t hand it over right away.

“Listen to me Dean. That man, he’s so sweet and gentle. You can’t go rushing in acting like a macho Alpha or you’ll scare him half to death, do you understand me?” She leveled him with a look that had always scared him as a kid. He swallowed and nodded.

“I don’t want to scare him," he said meekly.

“Good. He’s had a hard life. I don’t know his story, but I know he’s had it rough. You have the chance to change that for him and treat him like an actual human being and not just another piece of meat. Not like a baby machine. I know I raised you better than that.”

“Yes ma’am, you did, and I would never, ever treat him like that. I just…I need him. Please…” He held out his hand and she placed the slip of paper in it.

“Go on then. And lose the whole stressed vibe, you stink. You go to him like that and you’ll just frighten him.” She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him. He nodded.

“Yes ma’am.”

“Good, now go, and once you’ve properly introduced yourself to that man, you bring him on back here for a proper dinner. He was so damn gaunt when he started here it was scary. I know he doesn’t eat well when he’s not here.” Her expression softened and she smiled warmly. He smiled back.

“He’s never going to worry about eating again, I promise," he told her.

“Good, now get out of here.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean practically ran out of her office. He stopped by the table where Cassie was sitting eating her salad. Jo had taken his seat and was even enjoying his burger. She looked sheepishly up at him, trying to smile around a mouthful of meat and cheese. He rolled his eyes and chuckled.

“You ok Cassie? Do you want me to take you home now?" he asked.

“No, I’m going to enjoy my salad. I’m having a lovely conversation with Jo here. You go, and…let me know how it turns out, ok?” She smiled up at him and he smiled back.

“Thank you, and I’m really sorry.” 

She waved him off and he nodded, turning to hurry out to his car. He glanced at the address on the paper. He’d never been to the Omega District but he had driven past it over the years. The area scared him and he’d heard many horror stories and seen many reports on the news regarding that side of town. The idea that his true mate had been living there all this time was terrifying. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean drove slightly faster than the speed limit allowed but not enough to get himself pulled over. Any further delays would drive him absolutely mad. As he approached Cas’ neighborhood he could see the dilapidated buildings in the distance and see some shady looking people walking around. He thought twice about driving his precious car in there so he parked it a few blocks away and walked the rest of the way. All he could do was hope there were no Alphas lurking around looking for a fight. He suspected that any Alpha he encountered within the Omega District would be a pimp though, so more likely to try to win him as a customer rather than try to kill him. 

He walked boldly towards the street with the address on the paper. His hands were thrust down in the pockets of his jeans but he held his head high. When the building came into sight he wanted to cry. It was so old and in such bad shape it looked like the bricks would crumble and the entire structure might fall down any moment. He climbed the steps and went inside.

The lobby was dusty and dirty and he jumped when a mouse ran over the toe of his boot.

“Fuck…” He muttered as he climbed the stairs to the third floor. The hallway smelled like piss and beer, the walls littered with graffiti, but he ignored all of that. Faintly he could smell his Omega, and he followed the scent up to the apartment listed on the paper. He cleared his throat and knocked.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas was sitting up in bed reading when he heard the knock on the front door. Immediately his heart leapt into his throat. His thoughts went to the aggressive knothead that had tried to rape him only a week earlier. Slowly he got out of bed and slipped quietly down the hall towards the door. When he reached it he sniffed lightly, expecting the smell of rotting meat to hit him, but instead it was something much better. It was the smell of his true mate. He gasped.

“Castiel? Please, I need to talk to you. I-I won’t hurt you or force myself on you. I promise. I’m not that kind of Alpha.” The man pleaded from the other side of the door.

Cas placed a hand against the door. It was risky to let an Alpha into his space. So many things could happen, most of them not good, but the man smelled calm, and his voice was soft, unlike any other Alpha he had ever met before. And this was his true mate. He decided to take a chance.

“Hold on, I’m opening the door. No funny business," he warned as he turned the keys in the dead bolts.

“I swear, no funny business.” The Alpha on the other side of the door promised. For some reason Cas believed him. Slowly he edged the door open.

“What’s your name?" he asked.

“Dean, Dean Winchester.” The Alpha had the most amazing green eyes framed by long lashes. Cas hadn’t noticed the freckles that peppered the man’s nose and cheeks in the low lighting of the bar but now they stood out prominently. They just added to his beauty. He stepped back to allow the man to enter his apartment. Dean moved slow, careful not to startle the already nervous Omega. Cas quickly closed the door and locked it again.

“Do you often have problems with Alphas?” Dean asked him.

“Unfortunately, yes.” Cas replied. He stood facing the Alpha with arms crossed over his chest.

“She’s not my mate. Ellen said you thought she was my mate. She’s not.” Dean said. Cas dropped his arms, tilting his head as he studied the man in front of him.

“You can scent me if you don’t believe me. She asked me out the other day. It was our first date, but the moment I saw you…smelled you…” Dean bit down on his lip, afraid he had said too much. Cas eyed him a moment longer before holding out a hand. Dean marveled at the beauty of those long, slender fingers.

“May I then?”

Dean pushed up the sleeve of his flannel and held out his arm. Cas took it gently and sniffed at his wrist and then his elbow. The pure joy on his face when next his eyes met Dean’s sent the Alpha’s stomach a flutter. Dean held out both arms, a welcoming invitation for the Omega to scent him properly. Cas moved into the embrace, burying his nose in the space where the Alpha’s neck met his shoulder. He almost sobbed with joy, wrapping his arms around Dean and squeezing him tight. Dean hugged him in return.

“I’ve looked for you my entire life.” Dean murmured as he nuzzled against Cas’ neck, breathing in the soft scent of summer and rain. The man smelled absolutely divine.

“So have I. I…I had almost lost hope. I prayed for so very long that I would find you.” Cas whispered.

They stood like that for a long time, just content to finally be in one another’s presence. And then Cas’ stomach rumbled.

“Did you eat?” Dean asked, pulling back. 

“I-I had a microwaveable meal.” Cas replied just as his stomach rumbled for a second time.

“Those aren’t filling, and they’re certainly not nutritious. Let me take you out for a proper meal. I sort of didn’t get to eat dinner tonight either.”

As if to agree Dean’s stomach gurgled loudly making them both laugh. Cas was eager for more food and he had a hard time hiding the excitement in his eyes at the prospect of eating a real meal.

“Let me just change. I’ll be right back.” Cas pulled completely out of Dean’s arms leaving the Alpha standing in the living room with a sense of loss as he waited for the Omega to get dressed. Cas returned a few minutes later in jeans and a less worn out looking tee shirt. Dean looked forward to spoiling the man. He wanted to buy him anything his heart desired. He deserved it, his Omega did. 

“Come on, I know a great place.” Dean smiled and offered his hand. Cas smiled in return and took it. 

 

“Did you walk here? You couldn’t have, you wouldn’t have made it here this quick if you had.” Cas said as they walked down the street. He looked around nervously. He avoided being out this late and he could smell other Alphas around. Instinctively he moved closer and Dean wrapped an arm around him.

“Don’t worry, no one’s going to touch you, not with me around. I parked a couple blocks away from the District because my car is an antique. Anyone touches her and I’ll kill them. You’ll see why in a few.” Dean explained. Cas nodded, moving as close to the Alpha as he could without throwing off either of their steps.

“Oh…she’s beautiful!” Cas gasped when they stepped up to the Impala. He marveled over the sleek body as Dean unlocked the car and opened the passenger door for him.

“Not half as beautiful as you, and she’s gorgeous.” Dean said as Cas got in. Once the Omega was seated and looked up at him Dean winked and closed the door. He went around to the driver’s side door and got in.

“Diner’s about ten minutes from here but I promise the food is worth it," he said as he pulled away from the curb.

“Thank you. The microwave food never fills me up. Usually on the night’s I’m working I eat at The Roadhouse, Ellen lets me, but…I didn’t get to tonight.” Cas admitted, hanging his head in embarrassment. Dean glanced over, frowning when he saw the Omega’s reaction. He reached over, placing a finger under the man’s chin and gently tilting the man’s head up until he was looking at Dean.

“You’re not ever going to worry about food again. I’m not going to force myself on you, I’m not that type of Alpha, but I’ll take care of you, even if you don’t take me as your mate. I promise.”

Cas thought his heart might burst at hearing that. 

“You’re not going to force me to mate with you?" he asked, wanting to be absolutely sure he had heard Dean right.

“No. I would never do that. It has to be something we both want or it’s not happening.” Dean confirmed. Cas reached over, taking Dean’s hand in his and sliding their fingers together.

“Thank you.”

Dean understood the weight of those words. Even in this day and age Alphas across the globe thought nothing of forcibly taking whatever Omega they wanted, regardless of how that Omega felt or what they wanted. Dean was not a monster and he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life with a mate that resented him. He wanted the bond to be mutually agreed upon, but most of all he wanted the Omega to love him, and he wanted to love the Omega.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When they pulled into the parking lot of the diner Dean tried to park as far away from the other cars as he could. He could smell the Alphas in the area. He turned to look at Cas.

“Can I scent mark you? So that you don’t get harassed when we go inside. It will be safer for you that way. I can tell there are more than a few Alphas inside.”

Cas looked at him for a moment before nodding. “That would be acceptable.”

Dean pulled Cas close, rubbing the Omega’s wrists across his neck before leaning in to nuzzle at the Cas’ neck. The Omega shuddered, a small gasp escaping his lips at their close contact. Dean pulled back, a soft smile on his lips.

“Come on gorgeous, let’s go eat.” 

Cas’ face lit up at the compliment and he was out of the car before Dean could come around to open his door for him. They joined hands and walked inside.

The server was a mated Omega with a warm but tired smile. She led them to a booth near the front and handed them both menus.

“Order anything you want. Money is not a problem.” Dean told him.

“Thank you for this, Dean.” Cas said, offering a warm smile.

Dean wanted to moan at how wonderful his name sounded on the other man’s lips. He imagined how it would sound during the heat of a passionate mating. He cleared his throat, forcing the fantasy to disappear.

“I think I saw you on the cover of a magazine once.” Cas admitted. Dean had been perusing the menu but paused, looking over the top at the blue eyed man across from him.

“You might have.”

“You own an auto shop if I remember correctly.” Cas said.

“I own Winchester Auto Repair, the largest auto repair shop chain in the US.” Dean told him.

Cas’ eyes went wide. “Seriously?!”

Dean shrugged. “It’s not a big deal. I’m likeable and good at business deals. I built up a good client base and expanded.” Cas was even more in awe. A humble Alpha? It was almost unheard of!

Dean laid his menu on the table and looked at Cas. “I understand you’re a teacher?”

Cas nodded. “Yes, I teach at an Omega high school not far from the District.”

“And you like teaching?” Dean asked.

“I love it. It’s not always easy but it’s very rewarding. Are-Are you going to make me stop teaching?” 

Dean frowned and reached across the table to take Cas’ hand. “I’m never going to force you to do anything you don’t want to do. If teaching makes you happy then I want you to teach. Do you still have student loans? I can’t imagine an Omega school pays very well. I’m impressed that you had the tenacity to go after and obtain your degree. I never got past high school myself.”

“I carry with me a lot of financial debt unfortunately.” Cas admitted.

“Not for long you don’t. Get the bills to me and we’ll get them taken care of before the end of the week.” Dean said.

“No, I can’t ask that of you, that’s too much!” Cas was in shock that this man would offer to get him out of debt. It would feel too much like he would then have an obligation to pay the man back. He didn’t like owing anyone anything.

“It is not too much. I told you I will take care of you, regardless of whether you wish to take me as your mate or not. You don’t owe me anything Cas, we’re true mates. I want to do this for you.” Dean picked Cas’ hand up from the table and leaned in to kiss it gently. Already he could feel himself growing to care for his Omega. The man was beautiful and intelligent, and his independence and determination were impressive. Tears of relief welled up in the Omega’s eyes and Dean leaned in with his free hand to wipe them away.

“I can’t believe I found you.” Cas said, his voice so full of emotion that it cracked as he spoke.

“Feeling’s mutual. I’ve looked for you my whole life.” Dean’s voice was soft and raw with emotion as he spoke. Cas could see the glimmer of tears threatening to spill. Not everyone was so determined to seek out their true mate, and a rare few pushed them away once they were found in favor of remaining single, or because they had already claimed another mate. Dean could have done that years earlier. He’d had several people he could have been content to just spend the rest of his life with, however that was not what he wanted. He never wanted to just settle. He wanted, no, he NEEDED his true mate. It was only very recently that he had begun to lose hope and wonder if he could just find a nice Beta or Omega to settle down with. He was so glad he had waited.

The server returned and took their order, returning a few minutes later to bring their drinks. They sipped them as they discussed their lives until that point.

“How did you end up in the Omega District?” Dean asked.

I come from a long line of Alphas and Betas. I’m the first Omega in three generations, and the first male Omega in five. My father…he’s religious, and believes male Omegas are born as the punishment for the sins of the parents. So, the day I presented, I was kicked out of the house. I was sent out, in the throws of my first heat to fend for myself. I was only fourteen. It was absolutely terrifying. I ran into the woods behind our house where I knew no one went, and I waited it out. When it was over I tracked down my great, great aunt who was like eighty five at the time. She was an Omega, and for a while she took me in. When I was twenty though, she died. Courts dictated that, as an unmated Omega and without family to care for me, I needed to go to the Omega District. I was already mostly finished with college, so I kept at it, waiting tables in restaurants to pay for the apartment they assigned me, until I had my degree. Then I got the job at the high school. The pay was decent enough that I was able to quit waiting tables. My aunt had gifted me the car in her will, and until recently, it was the most expensive thing I’ve ever owned. I can’t drive it now though. I assume Ellen told you what happened.” Cas looked up, his blue eyes searching Dean’s green ones. Dean reached over and took his hand.

“She did, but that’s another thing you won’t have to worry about. Tomorrow I’ll have the car towed to my shop. If that’s the car you want to stay with, we’ll just get it back to like new condition for you, but if you want something better I’ll buy it for you.”

“You’re amazing Dean Winchester. I can’t believe you are the one destined to be my mate. It doesn’t seem fair. I’m just a lowly teacher struggling to make ends meet. There is nothing I have to offer in return.”

Dean smiled, his expression warm and caring. “You are all I ever wanted Cas. I hope you’ll have me.”

The waitress chose that moment to return, jotting down their orders before walking away again. Dean continued to hold Cas’ hand in his own, though what he really wanted to do was get up and move over to the bench with Cas, to hold him, scent him…kiss him. He didn’t want to overstep his bounds though so he stayed right where he was. They talked a bit about what living in the Omega District was like and he noticed how dark Dean’s eyes became when he regaled the man with various stories of life in The District. Unbeknownst to Cas, Dean was beginning to formulate a plan to restore the neighborhood, to try and bring up the value and rid it of the crime that infested it. If he wanted to convince Cas that he was a worthy Alpha he needed to prove that he could take care of him and protect him, but it was more than just that. He didn’t want Cas afraid for the people he left behind. He wanted them to be safe too. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The meal was delicious and it broke Dean’s heart just a little to see how Cas practically inhaled the food, leaving nothing behind. Dean ordered pie for dessert and Cas devoured that as well. When the meal was over Dean paid and took Cas’ hand as they walked out to the car.

“I would ideally like for you to come back to my house, but I understand your reservations. I’m willing to wait until you’re ready.” Dean told him as they got in the car.

“I just…It takes a lot for me to fully trust another person, Dean. I’ve been burned so many times by Alphas in the past, but I don’t think you would do those kinds of things to me. You make me feel safe. I want to be with you, I really do. Give me twenty four hours. Can you do that? Come back to my place in twenty four hours?” Cas was holding Dean’s hand and he ran his thumb over the back of the Alpha’s for reassurance. Dean’s smile was tight but he nodded. If Cas wanted twenty four hours then he would grant them to him. That didn’t mean he wasn’t going to worry the entire time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This time Dean drove right into the Omega District and parked behind Cas’ battered car. He placed a call in to the shop while he still had Cas in the car with him, leaving a voicemail for Charlie to get in the morning with instructions of where to find the car. Looking around and seeing the streets were mostly empty now he got out and walked Cas up to his apartment. It bothered him seeing how filthy the hallways were, and how awful they smelled. Someday he would explain in detail to the Omega just how he and his brother had grown up. So the man would know that his life had not always been as wonderful as he seemed to think it was. As Cas unlocked the door Dean looked warily around. He could smell another Alpha close by and that bothered him. Cas didn’t seem phased by it though.

“Don’t worry so much Dean. I’ve lived here twenty years now. I’ll be ok another night.” Cas tentatively reached out and placed his open hand against Dean’s chest, bringing the Alpha’s attention back to him. Dean’s expression softened and he relaxed.

“I know," he wanted to kiss Cas. Badly. Unsure how the gesture would be taken he instead placed a hand over the one Cas still had pressed against his chest.

“I’ll be back tomorrow night, ok?”

Cas smiled and nodded. “I look forward to it.”

Dean gave the man’s hand a squeeze and turned to go. Cas didn’t wait to close the door. He knew better. With both dead bolts in place he leaned back against the door and sighed. The Alpha’s scent still lingered and he hoped it would still be there come morning. He loved the way Dean smelled. 

A quick stop in the bathroom to brush his teeth and then changing back into his worn out clothes for bed was more than he had the energy for, but he managed it anyway. He slipped beneath his threadbare blankets and closed his eyes. His thoughts were of beautiful green eyes and freckles and they carried over into his dreams. It was the first pleasant night’s sleep he had had in years.


	2. Bringing My Omega Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ***IMPORTANT NOTES AT BEGINNING OF CHAPTER***
> 
> Dean is on cloud 9 when he gets home that night and tells his brother that he has found his true mate. Sam is thrilled for Dean. Now Dean will have someone that will love him and be as devoted to him as Dean will be to him, and it will be one less thing for Sam to worry about as he moves on with his own life.
> 
> Cas anticipates a dull Sunday as he waits for Dean to arrive later that evening to take him home, but when another Alpha shows up, one hell bent on claiming the Omega for his own, Cas becomes desperate for Dean to get there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to go over some key points in this story as there have been some concerns raised that Cas wil be a weak or effeminate character. Consider this clarification:
> 
> Those that read my works know that as I write a new ABO, I like to change things up a bit. I am not referring to the fact that this one has Omega!Cas, I am referring to the actual A/B/O dynamics, and what traits/qualities I instill in my characters. I was looking to write something a little grittier, a little more intense, and that will shed light on the dystopian-like world in which I set this. That being said, here are some facts/rules to help you understand better:
> 
> 1.) Cas is NOT WEAK. He comes from a society where most Alphas, and even some Betas are prejudice against Omegas. They are seen as stupid, weak, good for nothing but keeping the home looking nice and pumping out pups for their Alpha. They are thought so poorly of that many cities have incorporated what essentially are slums. Think WWII ghettos, ok? Unmated/unclaimed Omegas are assigned apartments there. Despite being forced there they STILL have to contribute to society by paying rent and utilities, many of which cannot due to many employers frowning on Omegas as potential employees. A very rare few got the opportunity to do more with their lives. Cas is one of them. He managed to obtain a college degree and find a job at an Omega high school, something most Omegas are not lucky enough to be able to do. So though he does live in The District, he has a roof over his head, food in his stomach, and a stead income. In a world where many unmated Omegas turn to prostitution and other unsavory forms of employment, Cas has managed to not only hold on to his virtue (think the 40 year old virgin, but less pathetic. This is by choice. He will settle for nothing short of his true mate, and ONLY if his true mate is not a total ass), but he is gainfully employed and, for an Omega, successful. Do NOT underestimate him! He's stronger than he first looks!
> 
> 2.) Remember the social status of an Omega in this story. They're below the low man on the totem pole. There are rules and expectations in a hierarchical society. Omegas are expected to quitely keep an Alpha's house, birth their pups, and obey anything their Alpha says. So when you see Cas questioning things like the fact that Dean is allowing him to sit in the front seat, despite the fact that there is a Beta present, he is not submitting, he is trying to get clarification on Dean's expectations of him, and where he fits into the Alpha's life. While Cas is shy and modest, he is not necessarily submissive by nature. If he was, he wouldn't have survived as long as he has. 
> 
> 3.) There will be further mentioning of the kind of environment in which Cas and his siblings grew up. Picture a family where Omegas are seen as filthy, disgusting, useless for anything except breeding. Your entire goal in life is to produce good, strong Alpha male children. And then one of your sons presents as an Omega. Cas' father would have seen that as a literal offront to his virility, an an insult to their family name. Can you imagine the awful things he would have said and done (beating and verbal abuse is what I'm getting at here, NOT rape, his father's not THAT kind of Alpha) to Cas before literally throwing him out of the only home he's ever know, while he's still a child? What that does to a child's psyche? And STILL Cas became a successful, intelligent, and clever Omega, which goes against everything society has been taught to believe.
> 
> 4.) While Cas is an Omega, I will not insult him by dressing him in women's clothing. Yes, male Omegas in my fics have dual anatomy and can carry pups (Male Omegas actually are fertile twice as long as a female Omega in this fic), Cas is still a man. A sweet, sensitive, caring Omega, but I won't turn him into a twink like people are afraid I will. I don't even like that term, it's derogatory.
> 
> 5.) In my fics, the Alpha/Omega relationship is one of give and take. They compliment one another and work together as a team. Where Dean is strong and can carry that Alpha temper, Cas will counter that with patience, soothing words, and gentleness. That does not make him weak. 
> 
> 6.) As for Dean, he has a greater respect for Omegas due to having people like Ellen having a greater influence on his life than people like his father. So while most Alphas adhere to the general belief that Omegas are nothing but breeders, Dean does not think that way. Ellen would box his ears if he did! So, as far as true mates go, Cas really lucked out getting Dean for his.
> 
> If you have any further questions about the dynamics, the societal structure, etc., leave me a comment. I hope this clears some issues up, and that you realize Cas is not going to be a weak character. If anything, he's the strengh Dean needs in his life.

“Must have been some date if you were out past midnight.” Sam joked when Dean came walking through the front door.

“Nah, date was a bust. Guess what though?” 

Sam looked up from his laptop, noting how his brother seemed to almost be bouncing with excitement.

“You…got laid?” Sam guessed. Dean glared for a moment before the goofy grin returned.

“No, I found my true mate!”

This time Sam sat up straight, his eyes widening in surprise.

“You what?! Where?! Who are they?! I take it that it wasn’t the girl you took out tonight.”

“No. I took her by Ellen’s and our server, the moment I caught his scent…” Dean closed his eyes at the memory, the wonderful scent coming back to him and he smiled wider.

“He’s beautiful Sammy, like drop dead gorgeous! Dark hair, bright blue eyes. He’s so thin though. Lives in that damn Omega District. I took him to dinner. Poor guy ate more than I did, and I didn’t think anyone but you could eat more than me. He was just so hungry. He’s a teacher at one of the Omega high schools, and he had taken to waiting tables for Ellen because some asshole Alpha busted up his car and he was trying to save up money to fix it.” Dean talked in a rush but Sam was used to it and able to follow along. He laughed happily at his brother’s joy. He was thrilled for him!

“So what is this guy’s name? And why didn’t you bring him back here?” 

“His name is Cas, uh, Castiel, but he goes by Cas, and he’s scared. He’s been treated pretty shitty by Alphas his entire life and has some trust issues. He asked me to give him twenty four hours, so I am.”

Sam was impressed. Dean was not like other Alphas and he had always admired that about him. 

“But you’re going to help him too, right? Get his car fixed?” 

“Of course. I already told him that, and I’m paying off his student loans. I know he’s struggling. I should have taken him to the store, bought him stuff.” Dean said the last part more to himself than to his brother.

“You’ll have plenty of time to do that Dean. Let him adjust to you first. Should I make up one of the spare rooms for him?” Sam asked.

Ideally Dean wanted Cas in his own bed, but he knew the Omega was going to need time to adjust so he nodded.

“Make it up real good Sammy, cause I’m gonna treat him like a king!”

Sam chuckled as he closed his computer and stood up. He left his brother still standing in the living room and climbed the stairs to the second floor. He went to the linen closet in the hall, humming softly to himself as he pulled fresh sheets and blankets out and carried them to the room right next to Dean’s. He knew his brother well enough to know that if he couldn’t have Cas in his bed, he’d want him as close by as possible. 

He stripped the bed and put the new sheets and blankets on in a matter of minutes but decided to stock the private bath with soaps and shampoos too. He added fresh towels and even snagged Dean’s robe from his room. Cas would be more likely and willing to accept Dean as his mate if he was not only surrounded by the Alpha’s scent but could also be in close contact with it as well. Wrapping himself up in Dean’s robe would be a delicious luxury for the Omega. With the room prepped he headed to his own room to go to bed. He could hear soft music coming from Dean’s open door and it made him smile. This was the happiest his brother had been in years. Everyone knew how long Dean had searched for his true mate, and how his desperation had turned to reluctant resignation these last few years. Knowing that Dean would now have his true mate, someone he could love unconditionally (not that he didn’t love Sam unconditionally, but that was different, they were family), and that would love him unconditionally in return, it gave Sam peace of mind. He wouldn’t have to worry about his brother anymore. Dean would have someone to take care of him. Finally.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas woke the next morning to bright sunshine streaming through his window. It was Sunday and as he stretched the memory of the night before came back. He smiled wide as he pictured Dean’s face, the smattering of freckles across sun kissed skin, bright green eyes framed in long, thick, nearly blonde lashes, full lips that he had so badly wanted to kiss before the man left, dirty blonde hair. His mind wandered to Dean’s body. The perfect Alpha body if you asked him. Broad shoulders, narrow waist, muscular chest (Cas could attest to that, he had touched the man after all), strong legs. Dean was…perfect. So kind and thoughtful, and ready to give Cas the world if that was what he desired most. The Omega was certain that his prayers had finally been answered. 

He lay there for a bit longer, trying to imagine what life with Dean might be like when there came a knock at the door. He pulled himself out of bed and approached the door slowly. The scent that met him was not that of an Alpha but of another Omega. Pam to be specific. Cas opened the door and peered out at her.

“Cas, honey, someone is towing your car.” The other Omega was standing at his door dressed in a crop top and shorts so small the bottom of her ass hung out. She had a cigarette in one hand and a worried look on her face.

“It’s ok, I-I met my true mate last night. He’s going to fix my car for me," he told her.

Her dark eyes widened and she grinned. “Your true mate? What’s he like? Is he gorgeous? Is that him I smell?” She sniffed the air and looked at him again. Cas sniffed the air too and realized that he could still smell Dean very faintly. It made him blush. 

“So what the hell are you doing here still if you found your mate? Why come back?" she asked.

He shrugged. “This has been home for so long and I just met him. I…was scared.”

Pam’s expression turned to one of sympathy. “I understand sweetie. He’s nice though? This Alpha? He didn’t try to hurt you, did he?” Despite Pam’s line of work she was rather protective over Cas. He got the impression that despite the fact that he was roughly the same age as her, she looked at him as though he were another of her children.

“No, he’s great. Took me out to dinner and we talked. He’s coming back tonight. I’m going to go with him then," he replied.

“Good. I’m glad at least one of us is going to get out of this shithole. I got some good news myself. Randy just presented as an Alpha last night. We’re filing for housing outside of the District, and Randy’s going to take over the claim on the rest of us. Looks like things are finally looking up for both of us.” She punched his arm lightly and took a drag on her cigarette.

“I’m glad. You deserve so much better than this," he told her. She waved him off.

“I’ll see you later sweetie. I need to feed the kids breakfast and then get to work.”

In the light of day it wasn’t so bad watching her walk down the hall to her own apartment. Once she was safely inside he closed and locked his door again. He moved to the window and peered down at the street. Indeed, his poor car was being loaded onto a truck and a woman with the reddest hair he had ever seen was giving directions to the men who were doing the loading. Cas knew these had to be employees of Dean’s. The side of the truck read Winchester Auto Repair. He wished he had a phone to call Dean and say thank you. Instead he would have to wait until tonight. It was going to be a very long day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It’s done, car’s loading onto the truck right now.” Charlie said.

Dean shifted the phone from his left ear to his right as he swiped the wet cloth across the kitchen counter.

“Good. No one gave you a hard time, did they?" he asked.

“Some weird Alpha in a really bad leisure suit came sniffing around, wanting to know what we were doing. Guy was super creepy. I told him to scram. He stayed, just watching, but he didn’t bother us anymore. I don’t see your mate either, though I think that’s him watching us from one of the upstairs windows. It’s kind of hard to tell.” Charlie said.

“It probably is him. It’s not safe there, and he’s wary. I can’t say I blame him though.” Dean moved to the kitchen island and sprayed some cleaner across the surface before he started wiping it with the cloth.

“So, why is he still in this dump? Why didn’t you bring him home last night if he’s really your true mate?" she asked.

“Because he asked for twenty four hours and I’m giving it to him. I’m trying to keep busy though, before I lose my damn mind," he muttered. Charlie giggled.

“In other words your kitchen floors are clean enough to eat off of," she teased. He smiled.

“Pretty much.”

“Well, I can’t wait to meet this guy. I’m just glad you found him after all.”

It warmed his heart to hear his friend be happy for him like that. She was the closest thing he had to a sister and he valued her opinion on all matters.

“Thanks. And you’ll meet him soon.” Dean promised.

Good, I look forward to it. I’ll get the guys moving now.” 

“Talk to you later.” He told her.

Dean hung up and stuck his phone in the back pocket of his jeans. It was just past three and he had slept only fitfully last night. He worried about Cas and his safety. It was foolish, the man had survived this long without Dean in his life, he could certainly survive another twenty four hours, but it had still been hard. Cleaning and organizing was a welcome distraction now as he tried to kill time before he headed back to Cas’ place. He wouldn’t relax completely until his mate was safe under his roof. Sam wandered in with an amused expression on his face.

“I don’t think Cas is going to care if there are smudges on the counters," he teased. Dean glared at his brother before moving on to the fridge. He wiped at the stainless steel surface and pointedly ignored his brother.

“Are you taking him out for dinner before you guys come back tonight?” Sam had waited until Dean had cleaned the entire surface of the fridge and moved on to the stove before he went into it to grab the fixings for a sandwich.

“Do you think I should? Or should I cook for him?” Dean tossed the rag in the sink and grabbed the mop.

“I think cooking for him would be a nice gesture. I can leave for the night if you want. Go stay with Jess.” Sam was slapping meat on a piece of bread when he heard his brother snort.

“Yeah, I bet you’ll stay the night with her.”

Sam rolled his eyes and added lettuce and tomatoes to his sandwich.

“What I was thinking is that it will give you guys some time alone, and time for him to adjust. Did you even tell him I live here?”

Dean sighed and sat down across from his brother, pulling the items Sam had brought out over to him so he could make his own sandwich.

“I sort of forgot.”

“You might want to let him know. I won’t be here forever, but he should know it won’t be just the two of you, at least, not until I graduate.” Sam pointed with his sandwich and Dean nodded.

“You’re right. I’ll tell him tonight.”

“How long til you go get him?” Sam asked.

Dean checked the clock on the wall. “Too long.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas didn’t own a suitcase so he packed what little clothing he owned and the few possessions he had in four shopping bags. He didn’t think he would need to bring his pots and pans, Dean probably had much nicer ones. Plus, everything he owned had come from second hand stores and he was already embarrassed to have to bring anything at all with him. But…he needed his underwear, and his toiletries, and he wasn’t walking around the Alpha’s house naked, so his stuff was coming with him, regardless of what Dean might say to that.

The meager furniture he owned was going to be left behind and he was somewhat sorry to have to leave it. A thought occurred to him. Pam’s children could benefit from it. He was about to open the door and cross the hall to her apartment when a scent outside his door gave him pause. The smell of rotting meat came wafting under the door causing him to choke and back away. He suddenly wished he owned a cell phone so that he could call Dean to come now rather than wait, but that was another luxury he’d never been able to afford. Pam had a phone however, though he did not have Dean’s number, so it was rather pointless.

“Castiel…I can smell you in there. What happened to my beautiful artwork? Who gave you permission to remove the car?” The voice was one that Cas had hoped he would never hear again. A hard body hit the door and Cas jumped, backing up further.

“Open the door Castiel! Obey your Alpha!” The man on the other side snarled. Cas was shaking. He moved to the window and looked out. The redhead was still outside, his car almost loaded onto the tow truck. He pulled the window up and stuck his head out.

“Hey!” He practically screamed at her. Her head snapped up in his direction.

“You Cas?" she asked. He nodded.

“Call Dean! There’s an Alpha trying to break into my place right now!” And this time he did scream. The body slamming against his door was using more force, snarling his name and threatening his very life.

“Please! The door won’t hold much longer!" he cried but she already had the phone to her ear. Even from this height he could hear her talking to someone. She motioned for the men inside the truck to get back out, which they did.

“Go, don’t let that man get in that apartment!” She commanded. Cas watched the men run into his building. She lowered the phone and looked back up at Cas.

“He’s on his way right now!”

Cas nodded. He was trembling so much, glancing back towards the door where the Alpha was now in a scuffle with the men from the truck. 

“Get off me! He belongs to me!” The Alpha was snarling. Someone yelled and Cas assumed it was one of the truck drivers.

“Bastard bit me!” He heard someone yell.

The Alpha seemed to be putting up one hell of a fight just outside Cas’ apartment but he kept away from the door. He was too scared to move from the window. Every now and then the redhead called up to him.

“He’ll be here any second, ok?” 

Cas turned to look back at her again. “Can you tell him to come up the back stairs? I’ll let him in the back door.”

She nodded, staring back down the street. It wasn’t long before Cas could hear the rumble of the Impala’s engine. It came tearing down the block, screeching to a halt next to the tow truck. Dean and a tall man jumped out of the car and Charlie pointed up at Cas. 

“Cas!” Dean started for the building but the redhead grabbed his arm, speaking to him low enough that Cas couldn’t make out her words, but she was pointing around the back of his building. Dean nodded and started around the back. Cas raced through the apartment to the back door, throwing the bolts back and running down the stairs to the outside door. Almost as soon as he opened the door Dean was there. He threw himself into the Alpha’s arms and Dean hugged him tight.

“What the hell is going on?” Dean asked when he was finally able to peel Cas off of him.

“There’s this guy, an Alpha, and he…he wants to claim me. Tried to take me by force last week. Dean, he-he tried to rape me. Please, please don’t let him near me! He’s outside my apartment and your guys can’t get rid of him!” Cas was shaking so bad that it almost appeared that he was convulsing. Dean placed a hand on either side of Cas’ face and forced him to look him right in the eye.

“This man here is my brother Sam. He is a Beta and he is going to take you into your bedroom where you will lock the door and stay quiet until I come to get you. I am going to deal with that Alpha. Do you know his name?”

Cas glanced at the tall man standing just behind Dean before looking back at the Alpha. “Alistair.” 

Dean took Cas by the hand and nodded for his brother to step into the building. Sam closed and locked the door behind him before following his brother and the Omega up the stairs and into the apartment. They could all hear the scuffle going on outside the front door and Cas began to tremble harder.

“Take him, Sam.” Dean ordered.

“Come on Cas, in here.” Sam maneuvered Cas into the bedroom and shut the door. There was no lock so he pushed the dresser in front of the door and sat down in front of it. Cas went and knelt down on the other side of the bed. All Sam could see were his eyes and the top of his head over the mattress.

“You don’t have to worry about me, I won’t hurt you.” Sam’s voice was soothing, his smile gentle, but it wasn’t him that Cas was afraid of. His eyes were locked on the door. If the two men from the truck that he assumed were Betas could not remove the Alpha then there was no way Sam and a dresser would be able to keep him out. There was a scuffle that sounded like it was going on inside the apartment itself and Cas disappeared behind the bed completely.

“It’s ok Cas, my brother is never going to let anything happen to you. He’s the best Alpha I know.” Sam continued to use a soft, soothing tone and Cas peeked over the edge of the bed again. The Beta was in awe of the intensity reflected in those blue orbs.

“You don’t know Alistair.” Cas whispered.

“Yeah, well, Alistair doesn’t know Dean.” Sam said, a cocky smile on his lips. Cas sat up a bit more, studying the Beta a bit more closely.

“What will he do?” 

“To Alistair?” Sam asked.

Cas nodded.

Sam paused, listening to the sounds coming from the direction of the living room. Dean was threatening the other Alpha.

“He won’t let him touch you, that’s certain. He would give his life for you, of that I’m certain," he finally said.

“He doesn’t even know me!” Cas was shocked by Sam’s words.

“You’re his true mate, right? You are all he has wanted since he was like twelve. Now that he has you he’s not going to let anyone harm even a single hair on your head. I know you have no reason to believe me when I say this but you seriously couldn’t have ended up with a better Alpha for a true mate. My brother is a good man, and I’m not saying that just because he’s my brother. I’m not one to compliment someone that doesn’t deserve it, and I’ll be the first person to call Dean out on being a dick when he’s acting like one. He’s not perfect, but when he cares about someone, he cares with every ounce of his being. You’ll see that soon enough.”

Something thumped against the bedroom door. Cas whimpered and dropped out of sight again.

“Sam, open the door.” Dean spoke calmly from the other side.

Sam stood up and pushed the dresser back into its previous spot. Dean was in the door as soon as it was moved. His eyes locked on his brother who nodded towards the bed. The Alpha rushed across the room, dropping to his knees when he saw Cas curled up between the bed and the window.

“Oh, Cas…it’s alright, he’s not going to hurt you.” The Alpha spoke so gently that his words actually made Cas jump. He peered up at the man who actually looked afraid to touch him. Cas scrambled to his knees and threw himself into the Alpha’s arms. Dean hugged him tight, running a hand soothingly across the Omega’s back in gentle circles. 

“It’s ok, he’s gone. No one is going to hurt you.” Dean continued to speak in that soothing, gentle tone and Cas finally began to calm down. The trembling subsided and he climbed completely into the Alpha’s lap once he had lowered himself to the floor and sat with his back against the wall. 

“Someone’s at the door. I bet it’s Charlie.” Sam said.

“Go let her in.” Dean told him. Cas stiffened and hugged Dean tighter.

“It’s ok sweetheart. Charlie is the woman you asked to call me. She’s my best friend, and she’s a Beta. She is no danger whatsoever, ok? She just wants to make sure you’re ok.” Dean said softly. Cas relaxed in his arms again and nodded. 

“Oh, Dean! You’re ok!” A female voice cried. Cas felt someone kneeling down next to where he and Dean were still sitting, and he unburied his face from the Alpha’s neck to look up at her. The face looking back was sweet and friendly, her scent calming.

“Hi Cas, I’m Charlie.” She smiled and offered her hand. He shook it.

“Castiel. And…thank you, for calling Dean," he said softly.

“No problem. I wasn’t going to let that douchebag hurt you. Unfortunately though I have to take Benny to the hospital, he needs stitches. That bastard used his fangs and bit him pretty good in the hand.” She looked up at Dean who nodded.

“I’ll cover his medical expenses. Tell him I said thank you.” 

“Sure thing.” She looked again at Cas. “Once you’re settled in at Dean’s I’ll come by and visit. Do you like Star Wars?" she asked.

Cas had heard of Star Wars though he had never owned a television or been to see a movie, so he had never seen it.

“I have never seen that movie, I’ve only heard of it," he admitted. Her eyes widened and then her smile grew wide.

“No? Well, we’re going to have to fix that. Popcorn and movie nights!” 

Cas couldn’t help but return her smile. “I-I think I would like that.”

She patted his arm, giving it a gentle squeeze before she stood back up.

“Ok, off to the ER. I’ll catch you bitches later!” She slapped Sam on the arm as she left the room.

“He’s really gone? How did you make him leave?” Cas asked, looking up at Dean.

“I make a very persuasive argument.” Dean said. There was something in his tone that told Cas he had threatened the other Alpha in a way that the man probably took seriously. He hoped he never angered Dean in a way that he would threaten him that way.

“You ready to go?” Dean’s expression softened and he brought a hand up to rub a thumb down the Omega’s cheek.

“I was hoping to give some things to my friend Pam. She needs them for her children. I didn’t think you would want me to bring them with.” Cas told him.

“Like what? You can bring anything you want.”

“My furniture. Her children share beds, and I think one child sleeps on the floor. My bed would benefit the child greatly.” Cas explained. Dean looked up at Sam.

“Well, let’s bring over anything she could use," he said. Sam nodded.

Dean waited until Cas stood up before he got to his feet. He stretched, feeling his back pop.

“Is it safe for me to go over and see if she’s home?” Cas asked.

“I’ll go with you.” Dean told him. Cas smiled up at him.

“Thank you Dean.”

Cas led the way out of the apartment and down the hall to Pam’s. He knocked on the door and smiled when he heard the pounding of small feet and then Pam hushing them.

“Cas? Is that you?" she asked.

“Yes. Can you open up for a moment?”

She opened the door and smiled at him before noticing Dean standing right behind him.

“This your Alpha?" she asked, leaning against the door frame.

“This is Dean, so, yes.” Cas confirmed.

“What the hell was that scuffle before? What was Alistair trying to get into your apartment for? That man is nothing but trouble.” She crossed her arms protectively over her chest and frowned. Cas was glad that she had at least changed into jeans and a baggy tee shirt. It sparked something in him at the thought of Dean looking at her the way she usually dressed. Jealousy maybe?

“Bastard tried to forcibly rape me last week. I just barely escaped him. He’s the one that trashed my car," he told her.

“I figured he did that. I just didn’t know why. Are…you getting ready to leave now?” 

There was a sad note to her voice, one that he felt too.

“Yes, but, I wanted to give you whatever you want out of my apartment. I thought maybe you could use the bed and dresser. And maybe the chair? I don’t own a couch. I found the chair in an alley a few years ago and it’s pretty comfortable," he offered. Her face lit up and she broke into a huge grin.

“Yeah? Thanks Cas! Robby’s been sleeping on the floor, he’d be thrilled to have your bed!”

Dean looked back at Sam. “Let’s go and grab it for her.” Sam nodded and went back into Cas’ apartment. 

“You’ll be ok out here for a few minutes, right?” Dean asked, placing a gentle hand on Cas’ shoulder. Cas smiled and nodded.

“Yes Dean.”

He felt a sliver of fear as Dean left his side but he quickly pushed it away. For forty years he had survived on his own. He didn’t need an Alpha by his side in order to feel safe. He turned his attention back to Pam.

“He’s a looker. You feel safe with him?" she asked. He nodded.

“Very safe. He’s so different from any other Alpha I’ve met.” 

“Good. You deserve to feel safe. I can’t wait to get out of this shithole. I’m so glad Robby’s an Alpha.” She sighed deeply.

Pam and Cas both moved aside as Dean and Sam worked to carry the furniture into her apartment. Cas event went so far as to give her the contents of his fridge and freezer, a gesture that brought Pam to tears. He knew there were many nights when her children went hungry because business for her was bad and he didn’t want that to happen ever again. The little bit he gave her wasn’t going to last for long, but it was something. She pulled him into a bone crushing hug that he happily returned. When they pulled apart Dean stepped in and held his hand out to her. Cas saw the thick wad of money he held between his fingers.

“You’re Cas’ friend, and I want to help. I know it’s not much, but it should feed your kids for a while. When you’re ready to move, give us a call and we’ll come and help so you can move safely.”

She looked at the money in his hand with wide eyes before looking up at the Alpha. Never before had one offered her anything without some sort of expectation in return. Her eyes went to Cas and he could see the nervousness in them. Cas took the money from the Alpha and pressed it into her hand.

“I will come back to see you and give you a phone number so you can call me if you ever need me.” 

Her eyes filled with tears and she used the back of one hand to wipe away as she nodded. 

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily!” She said, her laugh shaky. Dean smiled at them both, patting Cas on the shoulder before returning to the apartment to grab the meager belongings the Omega planned to bring with. He frowned when he saw there were only four small shopping bags.

“That’s everything he owns?” Sam asked as he moved to the closet, opening it and looking over the empty racks. There weren’t even any hangers.

“I guess so. Why don’t you take them down to the car, put them in the trunk. I’ll take one last look around and see if there is anything he might have forgotten.” Dean told him. Sam nodded and grabbed the bags, leaving via the back door. Dean took a slow walk around the small apartment. It impressed him yet again how clean the space was while the rest of the building looked ready to collapse. 

Many Omegas, when presented to an Alpha by their families, they came with some kind of dowry. Not every Alpha was in a position to take on an Omega that had nothing to their name, but Dean would have taken Cas as his mate even if he’d been dirt poor. He was lucky enough to be in a position where he could afford to provide anything and everything Cas might need or desire, and he was more than happy to do so. He made one last sweep of the empty living room before the scent of his mate came to him much stronger. He turned to find Cas in the doorway of the apartment watching him.

“I was making sure you didn’t leave anything behind.” Dean explained.

“I don’t own very much. I usually read, but I borrow from the library and I returned the last books a couple of days ago.” Cas looked at the floor beneath his feet. He was ashamed, though logically he knew he shouldn’t be. He was better off than many other unclaimed Omegas.

“I grew up with less than this, so I understand. Are you ready?” Dean crossed the small space, gently placing a finger under the Omega’s chin and lifting his head so he could look into those beautiful blue eyes.

“Yes, I-I’m ready.”

Dean smiled and held out his hand.

“Then let’s go home.”

Cas stopped to grab his bike as they went. When they reached the car Sam was stretched out in the backseat. Cas looked unsure but Dean opened the passenger door for him and nudged him gently, encouraging him to get in while he put the bike in the trunk.

“I…can sit up front?” Cas asked, his eyes wide with awe.

Dean moved around to get in behind the wheel but turned to face his mate before starting the car.

“Cas, I don’t believe in suppression. You will not be treated like you are less than anyone else. I will not make you ride in the backseat nor do I expect you to spend your life popping out pups for me. I want you to be happy, because if you’re not happy, I’m not happy. Now, that being said, I do need to tell you that it won’t be just you and me at the house. Sam lives there too because I’m taking care of him until he graduates. When he graduates he will get a place of his own. He is currently working on his masters and he is almost finished with it. Will that be a problem?”

Cas looked at the Beta stretched out in the backseat. Sam offered a lazy smile. Cas smiled back. He liked Sam and felt safe around the man. His eyes shifted back to Dean.

“I’m ok with that.”

Dean nodded and started the car. “Good. We got a room set up for you at the house. You can choose a different one if you want, but Sammy here went all out. You have a huge bed, your own private bath, clean sheets and blankets, and if you need or want anything else, you just come tell me and I’ll get it for you, ok?” He glanced over the Omega who nodded at him and smiled.

“I don’t require much. I do have one question though, how far of a walk or bike ride is it from your house to the school? Until my car is fixed, that is.”

 

“Your car will be fixed by this afternoon. You can drive to work tomorrow.” Dean replied.

“That quickly?” Cas gasped.

“Honey, I own the place, I can put a rush on anything I want. I told them your car is top priority.” 

Cas looked down at his hands which he had folded in his lap. No one had ever put his needs first and he was unsure how to address that.

“Oh…t-thank you. Should I refer to you as Alpha?” Cas looked up through dark lashes and Dean was once again struck by how absolutely beautiful the man was.

“Absolutely not. My name is Dean. Unless you want to call me something cute, like sugar bear or honey buns.” Dean gave him a flirty smile and winked. Cas snorted and bit down on his lip to hide his own smile.

“Oh, sure thing _honey buns_.” Sam chuckled from the back seat.

“You? You may address me as Your Majesty.” Dean shot back at his brother. Sam rolled his eyes and laughed. Cas watched the playful banter between the two, feeling himself relaxing even more. He smiled and shook his head. 

“Why do I suspect it will be quite interesting living with you two?”

“It’s always fun living with the Winchester brothers.” Dean replied proudly.

Sam leaned forward, patting Cas’ arm.

“Welcome to the family," he told the Omega.

Cas smiled wider. He had a good feeling about these two men.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapters will be added every Wednesday and Sunday. We're moving at a slower pace than usual because:
> 
> A.) I am currently trying to get the 2nd book in The Bloodborne Chronicles ready for publication
> 
> B.) I am seriously writing like 6 more fics at the moment
> 
> c.) I am working on book 3 of The Bloodborne Chronicles AND I'm working on another LGBQT novel. Hoping to have the LGBQT one out around Christmas, and the 3rd BC book out in the early Spring. So saying I'm busy? That's an understatment!
> 
> D.) This fic is not yet finished either. It's about 80% done, so I need the extra time to add to it as we go along. 
> 
> E.) I would lik to cling to what little sanity I have left. :)
> 
> That being said, I do hope you enjoyed this chapter and that you enjoy future chapters. I also REALLY hope you read the beginning notes so that you're thoroughly prepared for the rest of this fic. Leave a comment, I love them, and I am responding to them (albeit slowly due to everything I have going on atm). I love seeing what you all think.


	3. Settling In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas goes home with Dean and Sam, and after a grand tour of the house, jumps right into household activities, like helping with dinner. After a slight laundry mishap, they eat dinner together as a family, and Cas gets to enjoy his first movie. The bond between Dean and Cas is growing stronger by the minute and as Cas settles in to bed that night he knows he is safe, and concludes that Dean is the perfect Alpha for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy, sorry, I was sooooooooooooo busy today, but here it is, as promised!

Dean’s house was large but not obnoxiously so. It was a six bedroom Victorian in an old part of the city dominated by mated Alphas and successful Betas. Cas took a moment to marvel over the gardens that filled the front yard where butterflies fluttered about, and the at the beautiful architecture of the house. Sam had taken his bags inside despite his insistence that he could carry them himself, but Dean had waited by his side.

“Is this a family home?" he asked the Alpha.

“No. Sammy and I grew up in pretty piss poor conditions without a real place to call our own. I bought this place at the insistence of Ellen after I opened my third shop. She convinced me that I should have a home worthy of the mate I might one day take. I told her I was waiting for my true mate. She said I still needed a place. She actually picked it out. I trusted her to know what I would need. I still think it’s too big, but we do have friends that come to visit occasionally, and this way no one has to sleep on the couch.”

Cas turned to face Dean directly. “Do…you want children?”

Dean offered him a warm smile. “Only if you do. It’s not the end of the world if we don’t. I’m happy right here, right now because I found you.”

Cas felt an ache in his chest that he had never felt before. Affection maybe? It was an alien sensation, but he liked it. He reached out and took the Alpha’s hand.

“Give me a little time to settle in and get used to things, and…and then we can talk about things like that, ok?”

Dean squeeze his hand, his smile growing brighter. “Anything for you. Come on, I’ll give you the grand tour.”

The house was incredible. Cas was pretty sure every apartment in his old building could fit inside of it, with possible room for a few more units, and yet still the house was not what one would consider huge. The front door opened into a grand foyer with marble floors that passed through to a large hall with oak flooring and matching staircase that led to the second floor. To the right was what would have once been a sitting room but was now apparently a library. Straight ahead, at the back of the house Cas could see a large, sunny kitchen. Doors dotted either sides of the hall leading to it. Dean took him through the first floor, room by room. There was a den with a fireplace that the Alpha admitted was his favorite room in the winter. He liked to light a fire, put on the large screen tv and watch football. Another room was an office. It smelled heavily of Dean and Cas knew this was probably where he spent most of his time. The library was impressive and Cas found that he was eager to go through all of the books that lined the shelves, but the kitchen had him in absolute awe. 

The refrigerator, an industrial size, stainless steel thing was recessed into one wall. A restaurant size stove stood next to it. A large island stood in the center of the room and there were more cabinets and drawers than Cas had ever seen in his life. Dean chuckled as he watched Cas taking it all in.

“I like to cook. It’s a favorite pastime of mine," he told the Omega.

Cas looked embarrassed and stood twisting the edge of his worn tee shirt nervously. “I know I should be able to, but…I can’t cook. I’m sorry!”

Dean moved closer, rubbing the shorter man’s back. “Cas, it’s ok. I don’t expect you to cook for me, and if you want to cook, I’ll teach you.”

“I feel so useless. You’re such a good Alpha, and you’ve already done so much for me, but…I have nothing to offer you. I came with no dowry, no real skills.” His shoulders slumped and he hung his head.

“No, no baby, don’t say that. I don’t need anything at all from you. Come here.” Dean pulled him into his arms, nuzzling gently against the Omega’s neck in an attempt to calm him. Cas relaxed, closing his eyes and burying his face in the crook of Dean’s neck. The Alpha’s scent was soothing and he felt his anxiety melting away. When his scent had returned to normal Dean pulled back and smiled at him.

“Ready to see the rest of the house now?” 

Cas smiled and nodded. “Yes Dean.”

Dean took him out into the yard which, in contrast to the flower filled front yard was rather barren, though there was a patio area with a fire pit and lawn chairs off to the left and a large brick barbecue area to the right with a built in grill. It was impressive and Cas found himself wondering what barbecued food tasted like. He pointed at the grill.

“Could…um, maybe could you cook on that for dinner? I’ve never eaten barbecued food and I would like to see what it tastes like.”

Dean smiled wide. “Sure babe, any special requests? Burgers? Chicken? Ribs?”

Cas’ brow furrowed as he tried to process the question. “I…have no idea. What do you usually make on it?”

“I make a killer cheeseburger.” Dean offered.

“Then let’s have that.” 

“You got it.” Dean winked and started back into the house. He stopped at the fridge and pulled a package of ground beef out of a drawer in the bottom. Cas had never seen so much meat anywhere except in the restaurants he had waited in. He hadn’t realized regular people could buy such large quantities of meat too. Dean chuckled at his wide eyed expression.

“What?”

Cas explained what he had been thinking and Dean looked down at the meat.

“It’s not that much meat Cas, it’s only two pounds.” 

Cas ducked his head and blushed. “I couldn’t afford even a half pound. I only ever ate burgers at The Roadhouse, or the place I waited tables at in college.”

Dean left the package on the island and returned to Cas’ side.

“There was a time when we were kids when we nearly starved to death because our dad ran out of money and had nothing to feed us," he told the Omega.

“I don’t understand how you could have endured that and ended up…here.” Cas motioned towards the space around them. Dean just smiled.

“Hard work and a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. I’ll tell you anything you want to know. I want you to be comfortable and to feel safe here. This is your home now.” 

Dean took him by the hand and led him up to the second floor. 

“I have another question?”

“Anything.” Dean stopped at the top of the stairs to look at him.

“I know I can’t just leave the Omega District, there are law proceedings that must take place. Am I going to get in trouble for moving in here?”

“Absolutely not. I already notified my lawyer Chuck and he is going down first thing in the morning to file the paperwork making me your legal guardian. It’s a formality unfortunately since clearly you don’t require a guardian, but it’s a necessity so that you and I both are not arrested. When, and if you decide to accept me as your mate then the guardianship can be terminated and you will have equal rights with me. Chuck is very good at what he does and by tomorrow afternoon everything will be in place and you will never have to return to the District again.” Dean explained. He motioned for Cas to follow him.

“This is Sammy’s room.” He opened the door to find Sam sprawled across the bed typing away on his laptop.

“Hey!” Sam complained.

“Shut up bitch.” Dean said, a cocky grin on his face.

“Jerk!” Sam shot back, a grin on his own face. Cas’ heart ached for the memory of the playful banter he’d once had with his own siblings so many years ago. Dean shut the door on his brother’s protest and moved further down the hall.

“This is a guest bath and this…” He moved to the last door at the far end of the hall. “Is your room. I’m right next door if you need anything.” 

Dean opened the door and stepped back to let him in. Cas marveled at the sheer size of the space. The bed looked big enough to sleep four people and he was a bit intimidated by the sheer size of it. It dawned on him that it was a nesting bed and that brought a blush to his cheeks just thinking about it. There was a large walk-in closet, an armoire, two dressers, and a night stand on either side of the large bed. Under the window was a small table and a comfortable looking chair. Cas’ bags were placed on top of the table. He moved to the adjoining bathroom, leaning in to turn on the light. 

“Oh my!” He gasped when he saw that he had not only his own bathtub but also a separate shower that looked like something out of one of the sci-fi novels he had read. There were multiple shower heads placed all over the granite walls of the shower and he was excited by the prospect of standing under multiple streams of water. Before bed tonight he was definitely taking a shower!

“So…this is satisfactory?” Dean asked. Cas could hear the worry in the man’s voice. He knew this bedroom had been chosen for its close proximity to his own room, and he found that he actually liked that. He…wanted to be near the Alpha. Something stirred low in his belly and he realized belatedly that he was aroused. 

“Oh, yes! It’s wonderful! I do have a questions though. Um, where is the laundry?" he asked.

“The door directly across the hall from you, next to the guest bath.” Dean pointed to the door across the hall.

“I’m going to go start dinner. If you like you can keep me company.” There was hope in the Alpha’s eyes. Cas’ eyes flickered towards the bathroom. He wasn’t going to be able to wait until tonight for a shower. Slick was slowly starting to leak and it would only be another moment or two before Dean caught the scent. His heart began to race, filling him with dread over what the Alpha might do if he caught that scent.

“Um that would be nice. Go start. I’m just going to take a quick shower.”

Dean’s smile brightened even more as he backed up towards the door. “Alright. I’ll either be in the kitchen or out in the yard at the grill.” 

Cas smiled and nodded. The moment the Alpha turned to leave he shut the door. To his joy he saw that it had a lock as well. He wanted to trust Dean and Sam both though, so rather than lock it he simply made sure the door was shut tight before he ran to the bathroom. He stripped quickly, balling his now damp pants and underwear up and laying them on top of the toilet. When he was finished he would have to figure out how to work the washer. Right now he needed to get his hormones under control and get rid of the slick that was now dripping more steadily out of him. He felt warm as he started up the shower. There were too many controls to try and figure out how all the different nozzles worked so he settled on the rainforest setting that let the warm water cascade down over him from directly overhead. He groaned at the sensation. The best he got in his apartment was lukewarm water which was a nightmare in the winter. This…was pure heaven. He played with a few more controls until water was hitting him from three different sides. There was soap and a washcloth on the shelf and he lathered the cloth up before sticking it between his legs to clean up the mess he was making. He no longer felt warm and slowly the slick was stopping. He washed his hair twice, loving the argon oil shampoo that had been left for him use. His hair was the softest it had ever been in his life as he towel dried it later. Apparently clean hair was even more unruly and as he found clean underwear and pants he wondered how he was going to get across the hall to the laundry room without the smell of his slick stinking up the hall. He dressed quickly and checked the hall. It was empty, Sam’s door still shut tight, so he grabbed the pile of clothes off the toilet and hurried across the hall.

The washer was large and had way more controls than the simple ones at the laundromat he usually went to, but he figured it out after a few minutes and sighed with relief once it started and the soap was added.

“What are you…whoa…” Cas jumped when he heard Sam’s voice and the Beta was backing away from the laundry room, his eyes wide and his hands raised in front of him.

Cas froze, staring at Sam, his heart racing. Betas were not completely unaffected by slick or an Omega’s heat and this could be a breaking moment for them both. He wasn’t above fighting if it meant he could save himself from being raped.

Sam glanced down the hall before looking back at him.

“I’m not going to hurt you. Dean’s not going to hurt you. But…we should get rid of that scent.”

Cas relaxed slightly. “How?”

Sam held up a finger. “Wait here.”

Cas leaned out the door to watch the Beta disappear down the front staircase. It was several minutes before he returned with a small white bottle in his hand.

Cas cocked his head, puzzled when he realized Sam was holding a bottle of bleach. As he watched the Beta unscrewed the cap and poured the contents on the floor of the hall and just inside the door of the laundry room. 

“What are you doing?!” Cas gasped.

“Helping you. I trust my brother but it’s clear you don’t. This is way more powerful than the scent of slick. It’ll overwhelm his sense of smell and throw him off for a few hours. By then the smell should be faded and gone. I’m going to go downstairs and tell him I spilled it and then I’m going to come up with a mop and a bucket of water. I sort of trapped you in there, I’m sorry, so let me get it cleaned up so you don’t step in it.” 

Cas nodded and watched as Sam disappeared again.

It took longer than he had expected before he heard footsteps coming back up the steps though he froze when he realized he heard two sets. Then voices reached his ears.

“What did you do Sammy? Where’s Cas?” Dean sounded annoyed.

“I was getting the bleach for him and I tripped, spilled it everywhere. He’s stuck in the laundry room til I clean it up.” Sam had the decency to sound apologetic.

“He’s stuck in the damn laundry room? Geez Sam!” Dean sighed. A moment later the Alpha came into view. By this point Cas had already moved his clothes to the dryer but he was starting to feel a little lightheaded from the bleach smell.

“You ok there Cas?” Dean asked worriedly when he took in the Omega’s expression.

“I don’t feel so good.” Cas replied, swaying on his feet. He leaned against the dryer for support.

“Oh shit!” 

Cas was finding it harder to breathe with each passing moment but warm arms caught him as he started to fall, sweeping him up to cradle him. Then he was being moved. 

“Wha…” He moaned as he felt himself being carried down the stairs. A moment later they were bursting out into the fresh afternoon air. He gulped the fresh, clean air in, feeling the black at the edges of his vision beginning to recede.

“You ok baby? Please tell me you’re alright.” Dean let out a sound that was eerily close to a whimper as he nuzzled against Cas’ neck.

“Yeah, ‘m ok.” Cas mumbled as Dean set him down on the ground. He swayed for a moment, grabbing on to Dean for support.

“I’ve never used bleach before. Could never afford it. I had no idea it did that," he said as his senses came back to him.

“It’s offensive to anyone’s sinuses, but especially to an Omega. Something about sensory receptors reacting negatively to it. I saw it once in a documentary.” Dean was explaining.

“What’s a documentary?” Cas asked, looking up at him.

“Oh, darlin’ we have so much to teach you.” Dean offered a smile as he led Cas over to a chair near the grill. 

“Wait here, I’m going to go make sure Sam doesn’t pass out from the fumes. And I’m going to air out the upstairs so no one gets sick tonight from it.” Dean said as he started for the house. Cas nodded, watching him go. Once he was alone he stood up, walking barefoot across the yard to the empty, raised garden beds at the back of the yard. He imagined filling them with flowers, all sorts of bright, vibrant colors and it brought a smile to his lips. He had read many books on flowers and he thought this would make a wonderful rose garden. He was still standing there picturing it when he smelled Sam approaching. He turned to look at him.

“Cas, I am sooooo sorry man! I had no idea! Are you ok?”

Cas smiled and nodded. “Yes, I’m alright now.” Sam breathed a sigh of relief.

“Good! Dean dumped the water out and is going over it again with soap and water. I sort of had to tell him what happened.” He hung his head, his shoulders slumping.

“What did he say?” Cas asked. He looked worriedly back towards the house. Dean had not yet emerged but he was scared of how the Alpha might react.

“He laughed and said we were stupid. He also threatened to cut off certain parts of my anatomy if I ever bring any harm to you.” Sam chuckled. What a strange relationship he and his brother had.

“I’m not in heat.” Cas said just to clarify.

“I know, and so does Dean. And like I said before, he’s not going to hurt you. I was stupid to think of the bleach. It’s already messing up his nose. He keeps sneezing and wheezing. I opened all the windows on the second floor.”

When Dean finally did come down he was still sniffling a bit but seemed otherwise alright. He crossed the yard, smiling at them as he approached. Cas watched the way Dean moved, purposefully, strong muscles flexing with every step. He smacked his younger brother upside the back of his head without even so much as glancing in the man’s directions. Sam grunted and Cas laughed.

“Hey angel, feeling better now?" he asked when he stopped in front of Cas. The Omega nodded. 

“Yes Dean, I am no longer feeling light headed.”

The way Dean fidgeted told him he wanted to reach out and touch him.

“It’s ok, you can touch me.” Cas said softly.

“I don’t want to push you.” Dean said.

Cas smiled shyly and stepped into the Alpha’s arms, surprising him. Dean looked over at his brother who smiled and shrugged. As the Omega’s arms slid around his waist, Dean hugged him back. He just wanted to bury his face in the Omega’s neck for the rest of his life and never let him go.

“I’ll go get the burgers and start the grill.” Sam said as he started back across the yard.

Once they were alone Dean spoke.

“Is…your heat starting?” 

Cas tensed in his arms, too embarrassed to look up.

“N-no. It was a hormonal reaction I think. It’s not due for another couple of weeks.”

“Alright. It’s ok if it is. Your bedroom and all the rooms in the house are both scent proof and soundproof. There’s a lock on the door too, so you always feel safe. There’s no time stamp on being my mate. And if you decide you never want to, that’s your prerogative. I’m not a monster Cas, and I’ll never hurt you. You can wait out your heats in the safety of your room if that’s what you want. I will never force myself on you against your will.” He pressed a soft kiss to Cas’ temple and Cas hugged him a little bit tighter.

“Thank you Dean. I never imagined that I would ever find an Alpha that would make me feel safe…or wanted like you do.”

“What brought you back here anyway?” Dean asked, changing the subject. Cas pulled back to look at the empty flower beds.

“I was imagining the flower gardens that you could put in here.” He looked at the empty box, picturing the roses.

“We. That we could put back here.” Dean corrected. Cas smiled at him and Dean felt something tugging at his heart. He smiled back. 

“What kind of flowers? I’ll buy anything you want.”

Cas looked at the bed again. He had never planted a flower in his life.

“Um. I like roses. Perhaps climbing ones would look nice here against the fence?” He looked up at Dean to find the man’s eyes were roving over the empty flower bed instead of over him as they had been before.

“I could see that. I…like pink roses. Do you like the pink ones?” Dean asked.

“Pink would be nice. Maybe a mix of them since this is a big flower bed? We…” The word felt foreign on Cas’ tongue. “Could add in a few more colors too?”

Dean nodded. “Do you know how to navigate the internet?”

Cas shrugged. “I have used computers at the library a time or two but they’re very old computers and not easy to navigate, so I didn’t do it often.”

“Well, the ones here are new. I’m not very tech savvy, but Sam is. He’ll teach you if you’d like. And there is a website I use to order plants from. The flower beds in front? Some were already there, but I added in flowers I thought were pretty. I wanted my front yard to be inviting. If you find other plants you like that will add to that, let me know. We’ll order those too and add them in there as well.” Dean told him.

“This space has a lot of potential. Have you lived here long?” Cas asked.

“Hmm. I think we’ve been here four years now? Sammy’s been in school for a long, long time, but by choice. He values education and he enjoys learning. He already passed the bar, worked for about seven years before deciding to go back and get his masters. He graduates at the end of this summer.”

“How…old is Sam?”

“Thirty three.” Dean replied.

“And he has not taken a mate?” Cas was surprised by that.

Dean’s expression grew serious and his jaw flexed several times before he spoke again.

“Sammy had a mate. His mate…” He clenched his jaw again. “Abused him. So he came back to me to protect him. So I am.”

“He could leave a claimed mate?” Cas didn’t realize that was possible.

“His mate was not his true mate. There was a process involved to sever the bond, but it can be done when it’s not true mates.”

“How long ago was that?”

Dean squinted, his eyes staring out across the yard as he thought.

“Two years now? He was a mess when I went to get him. Physically and emotionally. I had to challenge his mate to get him back. The man was intent on killing my brother. I wasn’t letting anyone harm him. It’s why he’s dating a Beta now. He’s wary of other Alphas, just like you.”

Cas looked back towards the outdoor kitchen where Sam was standing at the grill, his eyes downcast as he worked on it. As friendly and calm as Sam was he never in a million years would have guessed the man had been tortured in such a terrible way.

“And his mate, that man can’t come back and take him away again?”

Dean shook his head. “No. My brother is no longer bonded to him, and I severed their connection in court too. That asshole can’t come near my brother ever again.”

They started slowly walking back across the yard towards the house.

“What would you like to do this evening?” Dean asked him. Cas had never had options before. Most nights he either sat in his room reading or he pulled the chair in the living room up to the window and sat looking out at the scenes unfolding on the streets below. Mostly because he worried about Pam and the other Omegas that worked the streets. He had no book with him, but there was a library full of them inside the house. He pondered the idea of watching television. As a child they’d had a TV in the living room of their family home. He remembered cartoons but he had never much watched them. Their father had insisted they focus on their bibles rather than on vices such as television. He thought he might like to watch one of the movies Charlie had mentioned earlier, or even any movie at all.

“I’ve never watched a movie. I think that might be nice.”

“You’ve never watched a movie? Not ever?” Dean cocked an eyebrow.

“Visiting the cinema was a luxury I could not afford. My rent increased by three hundred dollars since I first moved in twenty years ago. I was struggling to survive. My job only pays fifteen hundred a month. My rent was nine hundred. Then I had to pay electric, gas, water, and the maintenance on my car, plus food. After taxes I brought home thirteen hundred, so….there was no money for any luxuries.” Cas explained.

“I’m sorry Cas. I wish I found you earlier.” There was so much remorse in Dean’s voice that it broke Cas’ heart. He took the Alpha’s hand and squeezed it gently.

“It’s ok, we found each other when we were meant to.”

The mood improved after that and Dean took over at the grill. Cas stuck close to his side, asking a million questions about everything from how he got the meat to stick together to what seasonings he had used. The three men ate together around the table in a spacious nook just off the kitchen and Cas raved over the burger. With the opportunity to eat until he was actually full for once, he ended up eating another half a burger as well as the homemade French fries Dean had made to go with dinner. Sam was busily eating a salad with his burger and Cas had some of that as well. By the time he was done eating he was stuffed. He helped Sam clear the table and moved to the sink to begin washing the dishes.

“We have a dishwasher Cas.” Sam said as he began loading it. He had only seen a dishwasher once in a restaurant years before, but had never been allowed to load it or use it. He ended up watching Sam rinse the plates and add the soap before starting it.

“Come on, Dean’ll need help cleaning the grill.” Sam started for the yard.

“Do you help him with dinner all the time?” Cas asked, genuinely curious.

“Yes, whenever I’m home, I help. I owe my brother my life for many reasons.” Sam replied honestly.

Cas didn’t question the man further as they stepped out onto the patio. Dean had something in his hand and he was rubbing it across the bars of the grill.

“What is that?" he asked, observing the tool the Alpha was using.

“It’s a scraper. It gets rid of any food residue.” Dean replied, not looking up. He motioned towards the scant amount of garbage that littered the counters.

“Can you grab a garbage bag under the kitchen sink?”

Cas hurried back into the kitchen and located the bags. He brought one back and found Sam already gathering the garbage up.

“So, how did you like your burgers?” Dean asked him.

“I very much liked the flavor. I would like to taste other foods that you may grill.” Cas said. Dean chuckled and glanced at his brother who rolled his eyes.

“What’s so funny?” Cas asked looking between them.

“You and I just outnumbered Sammy here. I love grilled food. Him, not so much.”

Cas grinned and looked at Sam who looked mildly annoyed. “Sorry Sam, it’s good.” Sam broke into a smile and shook his head.

“It’s cool.”

They got the grill area cleaned up and Dean left the grates on the actual grill to cool while they went inside to the den.

Dean turned on the television and Cas found that he was excited to actually get the opportunity to watch a movie. He sat down on the couch when Sam motioned him towards it. It wasn’t lost on him when Sam politely excused himself to go up to his room. Once the movie started Dean grabbed the remote and joined him. They were seated a respectable distance from one another as the movie began to play.

“What is this movie about?” Cas asked, his blue eyes riveted to the screen.

“I didn’t want to traumatize you with anything violent for your first movie, so I went with a comedy. I hope that’s ok.” Dean looked over at him, a small smile on his face when he noted the other man’s excitement.

“Oh, that is quite acceptable. I believe comedies are supposed to be funny and make you laugh, isn’t that right?” He looked over at the Alpha who nodded.

“That’s right. I chose 21 Jump Street. It’s funny.”

“I heard about that movie. It’s about two police officers, if I remember correctly.” 

Again Dean nodded. “Yep. Except they’re both idiots, as you’ll soon see.”

When the start menu appeared Dean pressed play. He found his attention frequently being diverted from the screen to the man next to him as Cas watched the scenes playing out and his laughter rang through the room. The smile on the Omega’s face was beautiful and he loved looking at it. He once again thanked whatever powers might be for giving him such an attractive and intelligent mate. Cas kept to his end of the couch though not long into the movie Dean reached over to take his hand. He was gifted with a soft smile before those blue eyes went back to the screen, laughing once more at the characters’ silly antics. When the movie ended Dean used the remote to turn the television off. Cas yawned and stood up.

“Thank you Dean. That was an excellent choice for my first movie. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so hard. I have work in the morning though and I am quite tired so I am going to bed. Will I see you in the morning?” He looked down at the Alpha who was still sitting on the couch. Dean stood up and moved tentatively towards him.

“I’ll make you breakfast before you go. What time do you need to be at work?”

“Classes start at nine, so I believe I should leave here by eight fifteen as I don’t quite know my way there from here. It has to be a much further drive too.” Cas replied.

“I had Charlie install a GPS in your car, so you can find your way there.” Dean told him. Cas cocked his head.

“What is a GPS?” 

Dean looked momentarily shocked but he recovered quickly.

“Ok, so tomorrow I’m going to drive you to work. I will pick you up after work. I have a couple of things for you.” He moved around the Omega and motioned for him to follow.

Cas followed Dean to his office where the Alpha reached into a drawer and removed a small box. He handed it over.

“What’s this?” Cas looked down at the plain white box curiously before looking back up at Dean.

“Open it.” Dean urged.

Cas lifted the lid off the box and he smiled.

“You got me a phone?”

“I did. My number is already programmed in there, as are Sam’s, Charlie’s, and a few other important people that I’ll introduce you to later.” Dean explained as he took the phone out of Cas’ hands and turned it on. He showed the man how to find his contacts and how to make a call. Cas caught on quickly.

“You can text me too, if you’re unable to call. Text any time you want.” There was hidden meaning behind those words, as though Dean was almost begging him to text him.

“Show me how to send a text?” Cas asked.

The next few minutes were spent with Dean showing him how to text and how to use the camera. When they were finished Cas tucked the phone back in its box and smiled up at the Alpha.

“Cas, I, um…” 

Dean scratched at the back of his neck and looked nervously at the floor. There was a pink tint to his cheeks that Cas found adorable.

“Yes Dean?”

“Can…” Dean shook his head and frowned. “Never mind. I’ll walk you up to your room.” He turned to leave but Cas placed a gentle hand on his arm to stop him.

“What did you want to ask?”

“No, it’s too soon. Come on.”

Cas’ grip on his arm tightened slightly.

“Please, the suspense will kill me. Just ask," he pleaded softly. The way the Alpha’s eyes kept flickering to his lips told him what it was the man wanted and he was pleased that the man wanted to ask instead of just taking what he wanted. Dean turned to face him and he could see the internal debate the man was going through.

“Dean, do you…want to kiss me? Is that want you are asking?”

Dean’s cheeks reddened even more at the question but he managed a short nod.

“And you promise not to force me to do anything I’m not ready for?” Cas asked.

Dean lifted his gaze to look at him, his expression earnest. “I would never. You have my word.”

Cas believed him. “O-Ok then. But I must warn you, I’ve never…kissed anyone before, so I don’t know what I’m doing.”

He watched with wide eyes as Dean moved closer until there was barely any space between them. His hands moved forward, coming to rest on Cas’ hips as their mouths pressed gently together. His eyes fluttered closed and he sighed as the kiss became more firm. Cas brought his arms up, circling them around his future mate’s neck and pulling him closer. 

Their mouths moved together slowly and Cas simply followed Dean’s lead. He gasped when a tongue slid along his lower lip, and a moment later was gliding over his own tongue. When he pulled back Dean did the same.

“Too much?” Dean asked worriedly.

“N-no, I just…I didn’t realize tongues were involved.” Cas could feel the heat in his face. His cheeks were practically burning now

“Sometimes they are. I care about you Cas, a lot more than I thought I would this soon. I don’t want to force you into anything you’re not ready for though.” Dean leaned his forehead to Cas’ and looked him in the eye. Cas knew he wanted to kiss him again so he made the decision for him.

This time when they kissed he automatically opened his mouth more and was quickly rewarded when Dean’s tongue invaded his space for a second time. It was a strange sensation, but one that he liked. A lot. Dean pulled him closer until their bodies were pressed firmly together and slowly he deepened the kiss. 

Cas felt the first sparks of arousal as Dean pulled his closer, his tongue moving with more certainty inside Cas’ own mouth. He whimpered as he wrapped his arms more tightly around the Alpha’s neck. When he felt the hardness in Dean’s pants brush against his thigh he let out an involuntary moan, startling himself. He pulled back, blinking hard as he tried to get his heart to stop racing.

“It is always so…intense?" he gasped. Dean grinned and leaned in to press a soft kiss to his throat. He found himself relaxing, tilting his head more to give the man better access.

“No, but it can be.” The words whispered across Cas’ skin giving him a chill. 

“You’re so beautiful Cas...so amazing…”

Cas felt the slick before either of them smelled it. When it reached Dean’s nose he pulled back sharply, sucking in air as he gasped. Cas watched him closely. They were still pressed closely and he was fearful that one wrong move would set the Alpha off. Suddenly Dean relaxed and grinned.

“Glad to know it’s not just me getting worked up over here.”

Cas relaxed as the tension bled out of the air. “That’s an understatement if I ever heard one," he said, a coy smile on his lips.

“That’s my cue that it’s time for bed. Come on gorgeous.”

Dean stepped back and Cas removed his hands from the man’s neck. He took the hand offered to him and let the Alpha lead him up to the second floor. For the briefest of moments Cas entertained the thought of asking the Alpha if he could spend the night in his room, but he knew what that could lead to and he was nowhere near ready for that. Instead he let Dean lead him to his own room. The Alpha leaned in to kiss him one last time, stopping to nuzzle against his neck one last time.

“You smell so good babe.” Dean purred. Cas found himself purring back. Dean pulled back in surprise.

“Yeah?”

Cas blushed and nodded. Returning an Alpha’s mating purr was a sign of affection and acceptance of a potential mate’s advances. The look of pure joy on Dean’s was wonderful and something he wanted to bask in forever. 

“I’ll see you in the morning. I hope you sleep well.” Dean said as he pulled away, backing up towards his own room. Cas watched the man disappear inside before he shut his own door. 

Alone he quickly stripped down as he went into the bathroom to clean himself up. At least his boxers weren’t ruined this time. He fished his toiletries out of one of his bags and moved them to the bathroom. It excited him knowing this would be his home from now on. He was certain Dean was a good man and would treat him well. As his thoughts turned to the Alpha he felt the corners of his mouth begin to turn up. Dean was his true mate, and he found that the idea of taking the man officially as his mate was quite an appealing prospect. He hoped the Alpha was not going to be upset by the fact that he was so inexperienced in everything.

Cas brushed his teeth quickly before returning to the bedroom. He stared at the humongous bed, trying not to let it intimidate him. How was he expected to sleep in this thing all by himself? Frowning he decided to drag the thick blankets and plethora of pillows to the floor where he made himself a much smaller, single person nest. As he nestled down into it and pulled the covers up to his chin he sighed. Something in the dark room chirped and he cried out. He sat up and looked around, listening for the noise to happen again. It dawned on him what the noise was and he climbed out of his makeshift nest to cross the room to the dresser. The white box with the phone sat there and he opened it up to find a light flashing in the upper left corner. He pressed the button that Dean had showed him to wake the device up and he saw that he had a text message. An ear splitting grin graced his lips as he carried the phone back to his nest. He had a text message.

Dean: Goodnight angel. Sweet dreams.

He fumbled for a moment but figured out how to send one back.

Cas: Goodnight Dean. My dreams will be very sweet if they are of you.

He curled back up in his blankets with the phone clutched to his chest. As he drifted off his thoughts turned to the events from earlier and his dreams were of warm lips upon his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you all think, I love you guys! Leave a comment!


	4. Take Care of Your Mate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I almost posted this chapter without a summary and notes, ahhh!!!!
> 
> Cas wakes after his first night in the new house to find that Dean has made breakfast, and after driving him to work, offers to bring lunch for him and all of the other teachers. It leaves Cas with a warm feeling, and the knowledge that he falling for the Alpha with the bright green eyes and heart of gold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so before you all go jumping to conclusions and breaking your ankles in doing so, there is no ulterior motive behind why he wants to bring Cas lunch. He's just a good guy that does what he can for the people he cares about.
> 
> I do hope you enjoy the chapter....

“Cas?”

Cas groaned and stretched, his leg hitting something hard and he rolled over onto his back. Someone nearby cleared their throat and his eyes snapped open, immediately alarmed by the fact that someone was in his apartment.

“Baby, relax.” A familiar voice said softly. He turned his head to see Dean crouched down next to him, a worried look on his face. Cas relaxed and fell back against the pillows with a groan.

“Sorry. Forgot where I was.” 

“It’s ok, but sweetheart, why are you on the floor? Do you not like the bed? It’s memory foam, very comfortable,” Dean was asking. Cas looked over at him.

“No, it’s fine, it’s just…big. I’m used to sleeping in a very confined space. I shared a double bed with two brothers when I was a child and when I went to live with my aunt, she didn’t have another bed, so I slept on the floor on her back porch. I didn’t even have the bed I have now for the first eight years I lived there. I slept on the floor. I got the bed as a gift from a church one Christmas. I’ve never had anything like this before.” He motioned towards the gigantic bed. Dean’s expression softened.

“I understand. I didn’t have a bed of my own for so long that I didn’t know what to do once I actually had one. I bought a couch and slept on that for a number of years before I really got comfortable enough in the bed to sleep in it every night. If you want a smaller bed I’ll get you one.”

“No, this will be fine until…” Cas bit down on his lower lip as his cheeks flushed. Dean understood the words he wasn’t saying, the bright smile on his face proving that.

“Why don’t you come on down to breakfast? I went to all the stops.”

“What does that mean?” Cas asked. That was not a term he was familiar with.

“Just…come on down. I think you’ll be pleased.” He watched Dean stand up and stride out of the room. With a delicious stretch Cas got to his feet and got dressed. He had two pairs of dress pants and three button down shirts for work, and he chose the nicest of them to put on. With his shoes and socks on he checked his hair in the bathroom mirror before heading downstairs.

Even before he reached the bottom of the stairs, Cas could smell the food. His mouth was watering as he followed his nose to the kitchen where he found Sam and Dean both at the island. Sam was sitting on a stool, a newspaper in one hand, a cup of coffee in the other. Dean was removing pancakes from a pan, sliding them onto an existing stack on a plate in the center of the countertop.

“Morning, Cas,” Sam said, nodding in his direction.

“Good morning Sam.” Cas sat down on the corner stool and watched as Dean set a plate loaded with pancakes, bacon, hash browns, and sausage in front of him.

“You made all this just for breakfast?!” Cas picked up a piece of bacon and looked at it. Only recently had he gotten to try some, and that was thanks to Ellen and her policy stating that as long as he was scheduled to work, he could literally have anything on the menu free of charge. His first night working at The Roadhouse he had been starving and had ordered a bacon double cheeseburger. It had, until last night’s burgers, been the most delicious thing he had ever eaten in his life There were so many foods that he had wondered about but had never been able to try due to pricing. Bacon was one of them. He bit down on the crispy piece of meat, groaning at the flavors that filled his taste buds.

“New to bacon?” Sam asked, eyeing him over the top of his paper, amusement sparkling in his eyes. Cas nodded.

“This is only the second time I’ve had it.”

“Well eat up or you’ll be late.” Dean sat down across from him, a plate of his own food in front of him. He dug in, finishing his food before Cas was halfway done with his own, but the Omega’s hunger was nowhere near as intense as it usually was most mornings. He found that he was full after only a couple of pancakes and a handful of the rest of the meal. 

“Ready?” Dean asked, getting to his feet. Cas stood up and nodded. He followed the Alpha out of the kitchen and through the house to the front door. 

The morning was warm but not overly so. Fall would be upon them soon and Cas realized with dismay that he did not own anything heavier than a worn out trench coat buried at the bottom of one of his bags. His concern was not too great though. He was certain Dean would make sure his wardrobe was adequate for all seasons. With the fact that he would no longer have an apartment or utilities to pay for he realized he would have money to spend. It was a giddy feeling that left him feeling happy as he slid into the passenger seat of the Impala.

“When do you take lunch?” Dean asked on the drive.

“Oh, um, I have a free period at eleven. I…don’t normally eat on it though. Food is expensive,” Cas replied quietly. Dean frowned.

“Not anymore it isn’t. Would you normally eat in the cafeteria or go out if you had money?” 

“The cafeteria food is rather substandard. Only about the same quality as the TV dinners I would eat,” Cas replied.

“Then I will bring lunch to you. I want to be sure you eat well. Where would you like food from?” Dean glanced over at him as he drove, waiting for a response.

“Oh, well, um…I like chicken? Wherever you can get chicken would be fine,” Cas told him.

“Chicken.” Dean repeated to be sure he had heard that right.

“Yes. I am not particular about food as long as I eat at all.” 

It hurt Dean to hear Cas say that.

“You’re never going to go hungry, do you hear me? There will always be food in your stomach, clothes on your back and a roof over your head, understand? We’ll work on learning what foods you like and what you don’t like. Now, are there any other teachers that might like lunch as well? I can bring enough for everyone.”

Cas turned in his seat to look at him. “You would do that?”

“I don’t like to see anyone go hungry. If I have it in my means to help them, I will.” Dean pulled into the school parking lot and parked near the doors. The parking lot was old and in need of new paving, but the building itself was surprisingly newer looking.

“It used to be an Alpha school, before they decided to incorporate The District. Then they decided to move the Alphas to the other side of town and this became an Omega school. At least it has running water and heat,” Cas shrugged.

“I’ll be back at eleven. Where should I meet you?” Dean asked.

“I’ll meet you here at the doors, and we can go up to the teacher’s lounge.”

Dean smiled and nodded. “Alright then.”

Cas was unsure what the proper protocol was but he was pretty sure Dean was hoping he’d get a kiss goodbye. He decided he wanted to give him one. It was brief, just a tender meeting of their lips but it was enough to carry him through his morning. He crossed the parking lot and climbed the stairs to the school, stopping when he reached the doors to look back and see Dean pulling out of the parking lot. 

“Who was that?” 

Cas turned to see another teacher, Meg, climbing the stairs. She was looking back towards the Impala with interest.

“My true mate,” Cas replied, feeling a sense of pride. Meg looked at him, her already dark brown eyes growing darker. She grabbed the corner of his shirt and yanked it back to look at his neck.

“Hey!” He twisted out of her grasp and pushed her hand away.

“He didn’t claim you?” It wasn’t exactly a question but he answered it anyway.

“No, not yet. He’s leaving the decision up to me.” 

She leaned in to sniff at his clothes.

“He’s an Alpha, and he left the decision up to you?" she asked, her voice dripping with skepticism.

“Yes, Meg, he has been nothing but a gentleman. I feel safe with him.” He pushed past her and entered the building, but she was right on his heels.

“Where did you meet your true mate? I know you’ve been searching for like, forever," she asked.

“He’s the nephew of my new boss.” He stopped walking for a moment to think about his job at The Roadhouse. “Well, former boss. Guess I don’t need that job anymore.” He started walking again, a happy smile on his face.

“Is he rich?” Meg could be nosey when she wanted to be.

“He is, but he’s humble and had a difficult childhood. He has worked hard for everything he has earned. I admire that," he told her.

“What’s his name? Is he hot? What does he look like?” 

He rolled his eyes and hurried up the stairs to his classroom. There was still fifteen minutes before students would start to arrive.

“His name is Dean. Yes, he is very attractive. He has dark blonde hair, almost a light brown, and bright green eyes. He has freckles all over his face too.”

“Awww, you like him!” She pushed his arm playfully as they made their way down the hall. Her classroom was next door to his and it was how they had started talking in the first place. He’d known her going on six years now.

“Yes, I like him, are you happy now?” He unlocked the door to his classroom but didn’t walk in. As annoying as Meg was, he was enjoying the gossip.

“Did you move in with him yet?" she asked.

“I did, last night, and it’s a darn good thing too. Alistair came back.” He shuddered at the memory. “Tried to break my door down to get to me.”

“What is that creep’s problem? Are you ok?” Her voice was laced with concern. Though Meg thrived on gossip and sarcasm, she was a good friend and she worried about him. She luckily had never had to live in the Omega District. Her parents had arranged her Alpha mating from the moment she had first presented. She and her Alpha had been happily mated close to twenty years now. He was like Dean, supportive of Omegas and had encouraged his mate to pursue the teaching degree she had wanted for as long as she could remember.

“I’m ok. Dean and his brother Sam got there in time and Dean stopped him. He sent Alistair away, and then took me back to his house. It is a very nice house. He’s going to let me plant anything I want in the backyard. I definitely want roses.”

Meg smiled and gave a small laugh. “You’re happy. I like seeing you happy. You’ve been stressed out and sad for far too long.”

“Will you come visit? I think Dean would allow me to have people over. I’ll ask him at lunch.”

“He’s coming here for lunch?" she asked. Definitely not something she had expected.

“He’s bringing food, enough for all the teachers. You know most of them are unmated or widowed and they’re hungry. I think it’s a lovely gesture," he told her.

“Of course it is; he’s an Alpha and he’s trying to win your affections.” 

“No, Dean isn’t like that. He’s kind and thoughtful. You’ll see later.” His voice was confident. 

“Ok, Clarence. I do have a meeting later, but if it ends early enough I do hope I get to meet the guy.” She gave him a smirk before heading to her own room. He hoped Dean didn’t hate her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean was waiting on the steps when Cas came down to meet him. He smiled, holding up a bucket of fried chicken in one hand and six large pizzas in the other. 

“What did you do?” Cas laughed as he took the bucket from him.

“I wasn’t sure how big the staff was or how hungry anyone was.” Dean shrugged as he followed Cas inside. 

“We’ll leave the pizzas in the teacher’s lounge. Most of us have fourth period off since it’s a lunch period for the kids,” Cas explained, leading him down the hall. Sure enough the teacher’s lounge was filled, though only a few people were actually eating. Dean’s heart broke as he realized how many of them were hungry Omegas, underweight and barely surviving.

“Everyone, this is Dean, my true mate. He brought us lunch,” Cas announced cheerfully. There was murmuring among the group and a fair amount of wariness but hunger overruled it all and they began shuffling over as Dean set the pizza boxes down.

“Thank you,” A small woman with mousy brown hair told him as she grabbed two slices. She hurried to a far corner where she proceeded to devour the food.

Within minutes three complete pizzas were gone. Cas motioned for Dean to join him at one of the tables where he opened the bucket and pulled out a container filled with mashed potatoes.

“Oh!” Cas exclaimed as he found a plastic fork in the bucket and dug in. Dean sat next to him but his attention was on the other Omegas in the room.

“Is every teacher here an Omega?" he asked. Cas looked around at the faces in the room.

“Yes. The principal is a Beta, but all the teachers are Omegas.”

“Do they all live in The District?” Dean asked.

“Um, no. Those that came for the pizza, they do. Those that brought their own food have an Alpha or Beta that claimed them and provide food for them.”

Dean turned to face Cas and scooted his chair closer. He placed a hand on the man’s knee. Cas lowered the piece of chicken he’d been eating and gazed up at him. Dean grabbed a napkin and carefully wiped the grease from his lips and chin.

“It bothers me seeing Omegas going hungry and living in constant fear. I had a talk with Sam, and he has some connections. We’re going to start a revitalization project in The District to help make it a safer place for the Omegas forced to live there. The city won’t do it because they don’t want to fork over the money, but if I pay for it, it’ll get done," he explained.

“Dean, that’s a lovely gesture, but it would be incredibly expensive.” 

“I know, but from what I already can tell, if I pay for all the repairs I can claim it on my taxes and get the money I spend back. The property value will go up and crime will drop. Businesses can be opened there, owned and run by Omegas so that the money goes back into the community. I want to do this Cas. For you because I know you care about your old friends and neighbors, but also for those that are suffering there. No one should have to live the way the people there are forced to live. It’s not right.” Dean was looking back out over the room, watching as other teachers wandered into the room, delighting at the sight of the pizzas and hurrying to get some. Cas knew the man’s words to be sincere. It was the look on his face, the scent of his distress, and his words that told the Omega that Dean meant every single word he said.

It was that moment that Cas knew without a doubt that he could fall in love with this man, and that he could already feel himself falling. He wiped his hands on a napkin and placed one over the one Dean still had on his thigh.

“You are a good man, Dean Winchester.”

Green eyes turned back to meet his blue ones. Dean’s smile was small, as though he didn’t see himself the same way.

“I need to go down to the shop; we have a plumber coming in for an estimate and I need to meet with them, but I’ll be back to pick you up later, ok?”

Cas smiled and nodded. Dean gave him a kiss on the cheek, chaste as it was Cas could feel the meaning behind it. He watched the Alpha leave.

“That’s your true mate,  
Cas? He’s very nice. I’ve never met an Alpha like him before.” The Omega health teacher Julian Fairbanks said as he sat down across from Cas.

“He’s special. I am very lucky to have one as nice as him.” Cas offered Julian a piece of chicken, and the other man’s face lit up as he accepted it.

“He brought chicken just for you?” Julian asked as he tore into the meat.

“He asked me this morning what I wanted for lunch. I thought chicken might be nice. I did not expect him to bring me an entire bucket of it though,” Cas laughed. He was already full after the potatoes and two pieces of meat.

“I need to get back to class. I’ll see you later.” Cas patted the man on the shoulder as he cleaned up the empty potato container and threw it out. He left the chicken on the table for whoever else might want some before heading up to his classroom. He was most of the way there when he heard the phone vibrate in his pocket. It was a text message. 

Dean: I hope you’re having a good day. I forgot to ask how your day was going while I was there.

Cas: I am, and it was made better by your visit.

Dean: I’m glad to hear that. Are you up for dinner tonight? Not at The Roadhouse. Something a little fancier.

Cas: I don’t own anything nice enough for that.

Dean: Let me worry about that. We’ll go shopping after school.

Cas: Ok, if that’s what you want, we can do that.

Dean: It’s not about what I want. You do need some new clothes though, especially before winter, however we’ll save that for a weekend. Tonight we’ll just pick up an off the rack suit for you.

Cas gaped at the phone. A suit?! He had never in his life worn a suit! Where was Dean even taking him tonight?! He forced his concerns down and typed out a response.

Cas: That would be nice Dean. I will see in a few hours then.

Dean: You’ll be in my thoughts until then.

Cas smiled as he put the phone back in his pocket. Dean was so wonderful. Everything he did, everything he said, he was just wonderful. Still, he wasn’t ready to bend over for the man and let himself be claimed. If Dean was sincere about allowing him the time he needed to make the decision then he was going to take it. The idea of mating was still scary. He had never let another Alpha or Beta close enough to give them the opportunity to even mark him, let alone mate him. Cas believed in things that might start from a mating connection but went much further, like real love, and a desire to have the other person in your life always. Maybe even marriage, though that tradition was considered antiquated. He needed to talk more with Dean, find out exactly what the man expected. He knew Dean was leaving most of the decisions up to him, but he didn’t want to be a bad mate and think only of himself. He wanted to make Dean happy too. Tonight he would talk with his mate when they went to dinner. Happy with his decision he walked into class. He couldn’t help the smile he wore for the rest of the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I realize this chapter is shorter, but that's because the next chapter is a long one. Not only that, we have some important things popping up next chapter that will help give an idea of just how strong the true mate bond is, even before they mate. I do hope you enjoyed this chapter.
> 
> Leave a comment, let me know what you think.
> 
> (P.S. Published my third book today!!!!! 2nd in The Bloodborne Chronicles!!!)


	5. The Challenge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean has noble intentions when he takes Cas out to dinner that night, but unfortunately someone else has the intent to ruin it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's some angst. It is NOT between Dean and Cas, so don't worry about that. It serves a purpose though, as you'll see by the end of the chapter. I do hope you'll like it.

Dean was sitting in the Impala right at two thirty when Cas walked out the door. The Omega smiled when he heard the music pouring from the car’s speakers and saw Dean singing along and drumming on the steering wheel. He blushed and dropped his hands when Cas opened the passenger door. 

“Good day today?” Dean asked after turning the music down.

“Yes, it was a very good day, thank you for asking.” Cas replied as he got in the car.

“That’s good to hear. We’re going shopping, then we’ll go home to shower and get ready. We have reservations at seven.” Dean said as he pulled out of the parking lot. 

“I’ve never eaten anywhere that required reservations.” Cas confessed. His nervousness must have been apparent because Dean reached over to take his hand, offering him a warm smile.

“It will be fine. It’s like eating anywhere else, you just dress a little fancier. I didn’t eat in a quality restaurant til I was probably in my mid-twenties. I still don’t eat in them very often, mostly just for business meetings. I’m still a good old Southern boy at heart.” Dean smiled wider, winking at him. Cas laughed. He loved that the Alpha could do that.

The shopping wasn’t as stressful as Cas had thought it would be. Dean had a shop that he did business with and after taking the Omega’s measurements the clerk was able to find him a suit relatively quickly. It was steel gray and for being off the rack it fit Cas like a glove. Dean had a hard time taking his eyes off the man and Cas found himself preening a bit at the attention. Two pairs of dress shoes, four ties and socks were added to the purchase as well. With the new clothes in hand they went home, parting ways outside Dean’s room. 

Cas took a nice, long shower, taking his time to explore the new toiletries that had been placed on the bathroom counter while he had been at work. One item in particular intrigued him. It was an electric razor and he was delighted with the end results once he had figured out how to use it. He dressed in the new suit, selecting a black silk tie to wear with it but was frustrated when he couldn’t figure out how to tie it. He walked to the room next door and knocked on Dean’s door in hopes that the Alpha could help him.

“Come in!” 

Wherever Dean was in the room, he was nowhere near the door. Cautiously Cas opened the door and stuck his head in. He had never actually been in the Alpha’s room before.

“Dean?” 

“In the bathroom. Don’t worry, I’m decent. Come on in.” Dean called back.

Cas entered the room and slowly made his way to the bathroom. Dean was standing in front of the mirror styling his hair. He smiled at Cas.

“I don’t know how to tie this.” Cas held up the two ends of the tie pathetically. Dean turned to face him.

“That’s alright. I’ve become a bit of a pro at it. Come here.” 

Cas stepped closer and Dean took the two ends of the tie, flipping and twisting it so fast the Omega couldn’t follow all of his movements. Within seconds the tie was knotted. Dean tucked it neatly inside the front of his jacket and fixed the collar of his shirt.

“You look really good, Cas.” Dean told him.

“Thank you. I’ve never worn a suit before but it is remarkably comfortable.”

Before Cas knew what was happening Dean reached up to run his fingers through his dark locks.

“Your hair is rather unruly, isn’t it?” Dean asked with a small laugh.

“It is more so since I’ve been using the shampoo you left for me.” Cas replied, smiling.

“Well, I like it. It suits you.” Dean dropped his hands and walked into the bedroom. Cas followed.

The Alpha was in his dress shirt and pants already but Cas watched him put on his own tie and knot it before slipping his jacket on. 

“You are very handsome, Dean.” Cas told him, blushing as soon as the words left his mouth. Dean smiled at the compliment.

“Thank you. Are you ready to go?”

Cas nodded. Dean held out a hand and the Omega took it without hesitation. They stopped by Sam’s room long enough to inform him that they were leaving, and then they were walking out to the car. 

The ride to the restaurant was spent with Dean asking Cas about his day, and about the subjects he taught. Cas was happy to talk about his work but he wanted to know how Dean’s day was too. Dean gave him a quick synopsis of the plumber and his estimate. When they arrived at the restaurant Dean parked the car and go out, coming around to open the door for Cas.

“The Alphas here mostly have mates. No one should bother us.” Dean told him as he offered Cas his arm. The Omega took it, sliding his arm through the Alpha’s as they made their way to the door. They were greeted by a Beta in a black cocktail dress.

“Reservation for Winchester, party of two.” Dean told her. The woman nodded, a polite smile on her face as she looked their reservation up on her tablet.

“Right this way sir," she said as she led them through the restaurant to a small table that overlooked a large pond. As they sat down Cas smiled as he watched the ducks floating on the water.

“This place is very nice.” 

Dean didn’t’ get a chance to order before they heard someone calling the Alpha’s name.

“Dean! Dean!”

They both turned to see a dark haired woman heading to their table. Dean growled low in his throat and Cas looked at him, head tilted in curiosity before turning to look at the woman making her way over to their table. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise up when she practically threw herself in the Alpha’s arms.

“Where have you been? I haven’t been able to reach you! Why aren’t you answering your phone?” She stuck out her lower lip in a pout as she slid one perfectly manicured hand up and down the lapel of Dean’s jacket. 

Cas felt himself bristle further at the way she pressed herself close to Dean. She was trying to scent him, though Dean was having none of that.

“Lisa, seriously? We’re in public!” Dean pushed the woman back, his irritation apparent.

“I missed you.” The tone of her voice was as pouty as it was flirty. Cas shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he realized exactly what he was feeling. He was jealous of this woman. Dean’s attention was on her as he continued to try and get her to back up. The more she put her hands…her scent on Dean, the angrier he got. He clenched his fists in his lap as he tried not to jump up and claw at her. His scent must have changed for Dean was suddenly looking right at him with a look of concern.

“Lisa, I’m on a date, can you please try and show a little respect?” 

For the first time she seemed to realize Dean was not alone. She turned to look at Cas, her gaze cool and extremely judgmental. He squirmed under it. 

“Hello," he said dryly.

Her lips, a brilliant shade of red turned down in a frown before she turned back to Dean.

“Who is he?" she demanded. To Cas’ delight, Dean growled.

“You will show my mate the proper respect, do you understand me? You’re lucky he’s not clawing your eyes out right now for your behavior. Clearly he has more class than you do.”

She actually jumped a bit and took a step back, but she wasn’t backing down. “Excuse me? Your _mate_!” Cas could smell the anger and resentment pouring off the woman in waves but his own anger was growing. Before he could react though Dean was on his feet, glaring down at the Beta. His stance screamed Alpha as he loomed over the woman, fangs bared, still growling. Everyone in the restaurant had stopped to watch the events unfolding. The staff stood frozen near the kitchen. A challenge, no matter who it was between was, by law, not to be interfered with. It was clear to everyone that Lisa was challenging Cas, but Dean was not permitting it.

“You do not have the right to challenge my mate, do you hear me? This is MY choice, and I choose him. I will always choose him, he is my true mate. Have I made myself clear?” 

Either Lisa was insane or she just wanted Dean that badly because she actually had the nerve to growl back.

“I love you Dean! He couldn’t possible love you!”

Cas had had enough. He stood up, approaching the two. 

“Dean?” He kept his voice low, his tone soothing the angry Alpha as he placed a hand on the man’s chest. Slowly he pushed the Alpha back enough to get between him and the Beta. She growled again, flashing her perfect white teeth in challenge. Cas growled right back. Beta or not, he wasn’t letting this woman intimidate him. He knew full well that if she even so much as touched a hair on his head, Dean would kill her on the spot.

“It is apparent that you do not comprehend the word no. Dean has made his position on the matter perfectly clear. Unless it is your desire to be grievously injured this evening I suggest you leave us to our dinner, and do not bother my mate or myself again. Have I made myself clear?” His tone carried a threat with it that reflected in his crystal blue eyes as they suddenly became ringed in gold. The look of surprise on her face caught him off guard. She took a step back and dropped her head.

“You have," she conceded. Cas relaxed and leaned back against Dean who wrapped his arms around him.

“Get lost Lisa.” Dean told her. She shot the Alpha one last glare before storming off.

“I’m sorry sweetheart, I don’t know what came over her to make her act like that.” Dean murmured as he hugged Cas closer and nuzzled against his neck. Cas turned around in the Alpha’s embrace and Dean lifted his head to look at him. He gasped when he saw Cas’ eyes.

“Baby, your eyes! They’re gold!” 

Cas blinked and looked over his mate’s shoulder at his reflection in the window. Sure enough, gold eyes were staring back at him.

“I-this has never happened before!”

Dean guided him back to his seat before sitting back down in his own.

“I am not sure why it’s happening either. Let me text Sam and ask him. He knows about this kind of stuff," he said as he pulled out his phone. Cas watched him shoot off a text. 

“They’re blue again.” Dean told him the next time he looked up at the Omega.

“My eyes?”

Dean nodded. His phone vibrated and he turned his attention to it again.

“Sam says it has to do with true mates. When one of them is endangered or a mating threat arises, the Omega, upon feeling threatened, actually gets a rush of adrenalin which makes them three times stronger and…”

His eyes shot up to Cas’ face.

“How are you feeling?”

Truth be told, Cas didn’t feel so good. He was hot and his stomach was queasy.

“I don’t feel very well.” Cas admitted.

“Sam says it triggers an early heat, a mating response to distract the Alpha and make them want to claim the Omega.” Dean blushed as he read the last part.

“Oh.” Cas stared at him with wide eyes.

“I’m sorry Cas, really.” 

“It wasn’t your fault Dean. She was going to challenge me no matter what, I could sense it.” Cas shifted in his seat, whimpering when the first coils of arousal began to build low in his belly. It was different this time with Dean so close. Suddenly the Alpha smelled even more wonderful than usual.

“Cas, I think we should go. We’ll do this again another night, ok?” Dean was already on his feet and at the Omega’s side. Cas tried to stand but his legs were weak. Dean helped him up, steadying him with an arm around his waist. 

They made it out of the restaurant and back to the car without incident, and Dean was glad for that.

“Cas? Sweetheart, I’m going to help you into the car now. We need to hurry home.” Dean was trying to remain calm but he was nervous. His eyes kept darting around expecting Alphas, or even some pushy Betas to appear out of nowhere and try to take Cas from him. He managed to pull his keys from his jacket pocket and get the car unlocked. 

“I don’t feel very well.” It came out as a breathy moan that shot straight to Dean’s groin, but he ignored it. He needed to get Cas home, get him where he was safe.

“I know baby, we’re going home now.”

Once Cas was in the car and seat belted in place Dean raced around to the driver’s side and jumped in. A man halfway across the parking lot whipped his head around to sniff the air and Dean knew he’d caught Cas’ scent. He started the car and all but tore out of the parking lot.

“Dean…” Cas moaned and wiggled in his seat. The scent of heat and slick were cloying in the small space and Dean gripped the steering wheel tighter. This was his fault. If he hadn’t brought Cas out unmated in public where someone might challenge him this never would have happened. When a warm hand fell on his thigh he nearly jumped out of his skin. They were at a red light and he looked over to see the Omega staring at him.

“It’s not your fault. Don’t blame yourself. We’re not mated so challenges will come. Great way to start off a new relationship though, eh?”

Dean snorted but a smile found its way to his lips anyway.

“I’m not letting anyone touch you, Cas. You’re safe.”

“What if I want you to be the one to touch me?” 

The light had turned green but there were no other cars on the street. Dean took a moment to try and gauge the meaning behind Cas’ words.

“No.”

Cas frowned and pulled his hand back. “No?”

“Not until you’re sure. I promised you that I wasn’t going to force myself on you, and I mean that. Heat or not, you are safe with me until you make a decision one way or the other. And I won’t accept any answers given during a heat, so please, don’t try to push the matter.” Dean moved his foot from the brake to the gas and continued driving.

“I don’t understand why you’re so good to me, why you’re so…fair. I’m just an Omega.” Cas buried his face in his hands as the tears began to fall. They were just pulling into the drive at the house and Dean took the extra time to close the gates that he usually left open. Just in case. The house was set far enough back from the street and well insulated to prevent anyone outside from smelling Cas once Dean got him inside, but he was scared. He knew he was being paranoid but he had finally found his Omega and there was no way he was going to let the man get hurt or claimed by some other horny bastard. He turned the car off and reached over to pull Cas’ hands down.

“Cas, you are not just some Omega to me. You’re my true mate and the person I want as my official mate and life partner. Baby, you’re everything to me. Of course I want to treat you good.” 

He unbuckled Cas’ seat belt and the Omega slid across the seat to wrap his arms around Dean’s neck. He was still crying and it broke the Alpha’s heart to hear it. He wrapped the smaller man in his arms and nuzzled into his neck. He hoped and prayed that Cas wouldn’t make him wait forever.

“Come on, darling.” Dean opened his door and got out, pulling Cas with him. He scooped the man up in his arms and carried him into the house. For added measure he stopped to set the alarm before climbing the steps to the second floor. Sam was opening his door at the sound of footsteps on the stairs.

“What are you-”

Sam’s eyes widened and his pupils dilated. “Oh…”

“Don’t even think of touching him.” Dean snarled. Sam raised his hands in surrender.

“I would never, you know that.” 

Dean relaxed but only marginally. He trusted his brother but this was his true mate and his need to protect was overwhelming him. He carried Cas to his room and laid him on the bed. The Omega squirmed, clearly uncomfortable in the suit. Dean helped him to sit up and got the man’s jacket and tie off before laying him back down. Cas grabbed onto the lapels of the Alpha’s jacket.

“Please don’t leave me, they’ll get me.” 

Dean sat down on the edge of the bed and hugged the man close. “No one is going to hurt you here. You’re safe, I promise.” 

He helped Cas out of his shirt and pants, holding his breath as he tossed them aside. The pants were ruined, no way to salvage them, but the rest was ok. Cas’ boxers were soaked now with slick and he was whimpering, clawing at Dean as he tried to crawl into his lap.

“Cas, baby, no.” Dean held him back, a feat that he was wondering how the hell he had just accomplished it, and it broke his heart when a sob escaped the Omega’s throat.

“You-you don’t want me?” Cas’ eyes were large, lust blown but clear. Dean realized he was treading on thin ice here. One wrong word and he could push Cas away forever.

“Of course I want you," he grabbed the Omega’s hand and pressed it against the bulge in his own pants, moaning at the sensation. “Do you feel that? That’s how much my body is craving yours right now, but it’s more than that. Cas, I want you as my mate, as in bonded forever, and I worry that if I claim you now, you’ll regret it later.”

Cas swallowed hard and shook his head to clear it a bit. When his eyes met Dean’s next they were clearer, brighter.

“I understand. I don’t like it, but…I understand. My heat, it’s making me do things…” He swallowed again and shut his eyes tight. The next thing he was going to say was embarrassing enough even if he weren’t in heat.

“I’ve never had sex before. I’ve never…been touched, or touched someone else.” His eyes opened and looked down at where his hand was still pressed to Dean’s crotch. Embarrassment made him want to pull away but Dean’s hand was still covering his own, and it felt like the Alpha wanted him to touch him like that, so he left it.

“You’re so perfect Cas. My perfect Omega.” Dean nuzzled against Cas’ neck, making the man shudder.

“You’re not angry?” Cas pulled back to look at him.

“Why would I be angry? It’s rare enough to find your true mate but to find them still be pure and untouched? Jesus Cas, you’re like a dream come true. Did-were you waiting all this time…for me?”

Cas looked at him through long dark lashes and nodded hesitantly. “I only ever wanted to mate with my true mate. If I’d never found you, I’d have never let another person touch me.”

Dean felt his own throat constricting as his eyes filled with tears. Nothing ever went right in his life, until now. In that moment he knew he loved this Omega. He loved his future mate. It was for that reason that he pulled back to leave.

“Dean, please! I can’t do this alone!” Cas reached for him, catching his hand before he could step away from the bed.

“Cas, I told you, I don’t want to claim you until you’re absolutely certain.”

“I know, and I respect that, but please, I need…” 

Cas wasn’t sure exactly what he needed. For years he had been alone during his heats without even a fake knot for assistance. All he had were his own fingers, and the angle was never quite right to bring the kind of satisfaction he craved. He wanted Dean to touch him this time, even if they didn’t mate. Dean was back at his side, sitting on the edge of the bed and urging him to lay back.

“It’s alright, I know what you’re asking. If you want my help, I’ll give it this time, but not again until we’re mated. Ok?”

Cas nodded eagerly, his brain too hazy from his heat to realize that Dean wasn’t going to stay with him the entire time.

“Please, touch me, I need it!” 

Dean licked his lips as he looked down at the man lying in the bed. He was fighting every instinct that screamed at him to take this man and claim him. He had resisted Omegas in heat before without issue, but it was different this time. Cas smelled so good, like honey and fresh summer days, and Dean wanted so badly to flip him over and knot him good. But he wouldn’t do that. He cared too much about the man to take him against his will. Slowly he removed his own jacket, tie, and shirt but kept his pants in place. If he removed his pants the temptation would be almost impossible to resist. Cas was tugging at his belt, desperate to remove it but Dean gently pulled his hands away.

“No darling, this is about you, not me.” 

Cas looked up at him, unsure of what to do next. Dean smiled and removed the Omega’s boxers, letting his cock bob free. For an Omega he was incredibly well endowed and the Alpha felt blessed once again. As much as he loved the idea of knotting his mate someday, he also liked the idea of letting his mate pound into him too, even if they couldn’t knot him in return. Once he got Cas past his nervousness regarding sex he would bring the subject up. Now was not that time. Instead he brought a hand up, fingers closing around the Omega’s erection. Blue eyes flew open as his mouth formed a perfect little oh. This was not how he expected to be spending his date night, but his Omega needed him and he would be a terrible Alpha if he didn’t take care of him. As he increased the speed of his strokes Cas grabbed at him, fingers trying to find purchase anywhere they could. Dean leaned down to kiss him and Cas tangled his hands in the man’s hair, dragging him closer.

“Oh…Dean….feels so good…please, don’t stop!” He practically panted the words in the Alpha’s ears and Dean nipped lightly at the spot on the man’s neck where he hoped to someday soon leave his claiming mark. Cas whimpered, hips thrusting up as he practically pulled the Alpha down on top of him. Dean had to reposition himself in order to continue. With his free hand he circled Cas’ slick covered hole.

“Yeah?" he asked, not wanting to do more than Cas wanted.

“Yes, please!” Cas begged, spreading his legs as much as he could with Dean still on top of him. 

Dean pressed one finger in, feeling the way the muscles clenched around it. With slow, gentle movements he moved it in and out, listening and watching for signs of discomfort but Cas was whining for more, so he gave it. The hand he still had on Cas’ cock moved faster, pulling the man along towards his orgasm as he worked a second finger in and hooked it, brushing against his prostate. Cas screamed and Dean was incredibly grateful for having sound proof walls.

“Come on sweetheart, come for me.” Dean urged. Cas’ hips thrust upwards as the orgasm slammed into him and he came in hot spurts all over his chest. His body went limp and Dean withdrew both hands. Cas was too weak to protest as he watched the Alpha walk into the bathroom and start running water. He reappeared a few minutes later and scooped Cas up.

“What are you doing?” Cas asked weakly.

“Taking care of you like I should. I ran you a bath.” Dean replied. Cas rubbed his cheek against the Alpha’s chest.

“You’re so good to me. You’re the perfect one, not me.” Cas murmured as Dean lowered him into the water. He watched as the Alphas stripped off his pants but left his boxers on before slipping into the tub with him. He positioned himself behind Cas and pulled the Omega back so he could lean against him. A moment later he was running a soapy washcloth down Cas’ chest. The Omega purred and closed his eyes in contentment. This was the second time now that Dean had heard him purr, and his heart swelled at the sound. He poured water over Cas to wash away the soap before helping him out of the tub.

“I’m so tired.” Cas yawned and leaned against Dean.

“Come on gorgeous, let’s get you to bed.” 

Dean walked him back to the bedroom and tucked him in. He turned to leave, half expecting Cas to reach out for him again.

“Thank you Dean, for helping me through that. I know it’s just the beginning but for me the first wave is almost always unbearable to endure alone.”

“Anything for you sweetheart. There are…things…to help you through the rest of your heat, if you need them. They’re in the bottom drawer there.” Dean nodded towards the bottom drawer on the nightstand. Cas yawned again and nodded. Dean placed a soft kiss on the Omega’s forehead before gathering up his discarded clothes and the ruined boxers and pants from Cas before leaving the room. He disposed of the soiled clothes, setting his own aside to be sent to the dry cleaner. 

Sam was hovering in his own doorway watching as his brother left Cas’ room and went into his own room. He was alarmed by the fact that Dean was wearing a soaking wet pair of boxers and nothing else, but the apparent raging hard on the Alpha was sporting meant he had not broken his promise to Cas. Sam was proud of his brother for that. Once Dean’s bedroom door closed Sam retreated into his own. The last thing he wanted to think about was what Dean might be doing behind his closed door.

Dean paced his room for several minutes trying to get the scent of Cas out of his nose and out of his head. The bath had helped but he still wanted to march next door and climb back into the nest with his Omega. God he wanted Cas so bad it almost hurt.

“Fuck…” He growled through clenched teeth as he palmed at his hardened cock. It throbbed almost painfully and despite the bath he’d just shared with Cas, he was starting to sweat. He continued to pace, shucking the sopping wet boxers as he went. He felt like a trapped animal but he had the proper sense of mind to stay within his cage. If Cas needed him, he would text or he would come to him. With a pathetic whine he stalked into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. It only gave him an iota of satisfaction given his current mood. 

Dean turned on his shower, adjusting nozzles until he had the water pounding out of six different heads, and then he slipped under the hot water. He needs his Omega but he couldn’t have him. At least, not yet. He let out a choked sob as he grabbed hold of his own erection and using his pre-come for lubrication, began to stroke himself.

“Cas, oh…fuck…” He increased the speed, picturing the Omega’s dick in his hand, the feel of his perfect, slicked up hole as his fingers slid in and out. The orgasm that tore through him was incredible and his legs were shaking terribly as he tried to remain standing. Each time he shifted his weight and his dick brushed across his stomach it sent another jolt of pleasure through him and he released another load. It was a good half hour before his erection went down and he could safely leave the shower. 

Dean dried off and returned to his bedroom to get dressed. He had just put on a clean pair of boxers and some pajama pants when there came a knock at his door. He crossed the room and opened the door to find his brother standing there.

“What’s up Sammy?” 

“Uh, Cas keeps texting me. I think he thinks he’s texting you.” Sam held out his phone and Dean took it, reading the texts. The Alpha sighed heavily.

“He’s uh, in heat. Just ignore the texts if you can. I’ll text him from my phone.” 

“Yeah, I got that from the heavy scent of slick stinking up the hallway. What the hell happened tonight that triggered it?” Sam asked.

“I took him out for dinner and fucking Lisa was there. Bitch challenged Cas and it triggered his heat.” Dean ran a hand down his face and grunted in frustration.

“I’m guessing Cas won the challenge?” Sam raised an eyebrow as he waited for an answer.

“That’s why I texted you earlier. Something happened. Lisa bared her teeth and I know the bitch was going to attack him, but he got between us and his eyes turned gold. Suddenly she just backed down and left. No blood was drawn, no one got hurt, nothing. It was weird. You said it was because he got stronger, but it felt like it was something else.” Dean waved his hands in the air, unsure how exactly to describe what had happened. Sam pursed his lips as he considered Dean’s words.

“So, let me get this straight. Lisa wanted you, Cas got mad, she challenged him, he got between you, and suddenly his eyes went gold?”

Dean nodded. “Pretty much.”

“Ok, so what I looked up online, that’s what I told you, about the true mate being challenged and the extra strength and stuff, but there was more to it than just that. I didn’t want you scaring Cas though with it, so I was waiting til you got back here to tell you.” Sam shifted his weight from one foot to the other, a sign that he was nervous.

“Well, come on in, have a seat and tell me the rest. And shut the door. If it’s bad I don’t want Cas to accidentally overhear if he comes this way.” Dean motioned towards the couch. Sam shut the door and went to sit down on it.

“So, the whole eyes glowing thing? Yeah, it only happens between true mates, which is why Lisa probably backed down, but from what I could read in the few minutes I was given to respond to you earlier, it says that in rare instances a connection between true mates is so strong that even without a claiming bite, they form an incredibly tight bond. But, that one is tentative. It can be broken if another Alpha were to claim the Omega, or another Omega or Beta were to claim the Alpha. We both know those types of bonds can be broken, but I speak from personal experience when I say that shit hurts like a bitch. The bad part? If you got claimed tonight by Lisa, the partial bond he already has with you would have been enough to kill him. He is bonded solely to you Dean. I highly recommend claiming him and making the bond unbreakable by anyone else.” Sam explained.

Dean sat on the edge of his bed and listened to everything his brother had to say. It send chills through him to think that he had just put his Omega’s life in danger. 

“I refused to claim him tonight. I told him I want to wait until his heat is over.”

“I know, you’re a decent guy giving him choices and all, but I would be especially careful if I were you. He’s an attractive, unmated Omega. He’s like crack to all those jerk Alphas out there just looking for a warm hole, you know? Or the few sick ones that would claim him just to have a toy to torture. He deserves better than that. He deserves you Dean.”

Dean rubbed at his jaw, annoyed with his own sense of decency and honor. His desire to spare forcing Cas into something he wasn’t ready for might actually end up harming him more if they weren’t careful. His phone buzzed on the nightstand. He picked it up and open the message. It was from Cas:

Cas: I apologize for texting Sam. I just saw Winchester in my phone. This one has passed but I find that I don’t want to be alone. I’m not asking for anything. Just that I would like to sleep with you. I should be alright until morning. I also need to call in to work in the morning and tell them I will not be in.

Dean chuckled. Even in heat the man was so darn formal.

Dean: Come to my room. We need to talk anyway, I have something important we need to discuss.

Cas: Are you upset with me?

Dean: No, of course not! I just discovered some new information about what happened earlier and I want to explain it to you.

Cas: Alright. Let me take a quick shower and I’ll be in there.

Dean: See you in a few gorgeous.

He set the phone on the nightstand and turned to look at his brother who was watching him.

“Cas?” Sam asked. Dean nodded.

“He doesn’t want to be alone tonight. I think the events earlier bothered him more than he’s letting on. He wants to be close to me.” 

Sam was biting on the inside of his cheek and he listened to his brother.

“I think it’s that bond. Are you going to talk to him about it?”

“Yeah, but I want to try and put it in non-frightening words. I don’t want him thinking I forced something on him, because obviously I haven’t.” Dean yawned and Sam took that as his queue to leave.

“Let me know how it all goes. He’s an intelligent guy, I think he’ll understand it and accept it. I already see the way he looks at you, like you hung the damn moon and stars. There’s no way he’s going to deny you as his mate.” 

Sam patted his brother’s shoulder as he left the room. Dean got up and went to the bathroom to brush his teeth. When he returned to his room he laid down in his bed and turned off the light. He didn’t fall asleep though, despite his exhaustion. A few minutes later he heard a soft knock at his door.

“Come in, Cas.” 

The door opened and the Omega stuck his head in. “Did I wake you?”

“No baby, I was waiting for you. Come on and get under the covers.” Dean held up the blankets and after closing the door Cas crossed the room to climb into the bed. It was a huge nesting bed, just like the one in his room except this one smelled heavily of Dean. It was soothing to Cas’ raging hormones. He slipped under the covers and turned on his side with his arms wrapped around himself. Dean rolled over to face him.

“Are you cold?” The Alpha asked. He reached a hand out to touch Cas and winced at how cold his skin actually was. Normally an Omega ran frighteningly hot during a heat.

“A bit. I took a cold shower.” Cas confessed.

“Come here.” Dean turned Cas so that he was facing away from him and then pulled him against his chest. The smell of the Omega’s heat had been dramatically lessened by the shower and whatever body wash he was using. Cas settled back against him with a contented sigh.

“What did you want to talk about?" he asked.

Dean was tired, bone weary exhausted after his shower and mind blowing orgasm, but he needed to talk to Cas.

“I know we’ve only known each other a couple of days now, but…I care about you, a lot. I want you as my mate, you know that much, but I learned something else about what happened tonight at the restaurant.”

Cas rolled over to face Dean. In the pale light filtering in through the window Cas could make out Dean’s face.

“Was it something bad?" he asked.

“No, not at all, but…it just makes me worry more about you being out and about, unmated.” Dean replied. Cas just stared at him, waiting for an explanation.

Dean sighed and began talking.

“So it would appear that what happened earlier tonight, it was due to us being true mates, but apparently some true mates have a…special bond, even without the claiming bite, and it looks like you and I have that bond. Your eyes glowing gold pretty much said that. This bond though it has…complications. From what I found out, if someone were to bite me, it would kill you.”

Dean felt Cas stiffen in his arms.

“No one is claiming you.” Cas said firmly. The rumbling in his chest Dean quickly recognized as a growl. He moved quickly to calm the man.

“You’re right, no one is. I waited too long to find you, I’m not letting any asshats do anything to threaten you.”

Cas relaxed but not nearly as much as Dean wanted him to. 

“Anyway, I wanted to tell you that we do have a bond already, and…I would very much like to make it a permanent one.” Dean pressed his nose to Cas’ collarbone before giving it a quick lick. The Omega gasped and shuddered in his arms.

“Dean…I…can feel that bond you’re talking about. I do want to talk to you though, about a few things while I’m still coherent.” Cas said.

“Like what?”

“Well, for starters, I want to know what you want, from me, from this relationship, and what do you see happening in our future. And please don’t say that all you want is me. I need to know the details, and what you expect of our lives together if I say yes.” Castiel looked up with large eyes, waiting for Dean’s answer.

“Well…of course I want you, and anything that makes you happy, but…I mostly just want you, as my mate, for the rest of our lives. To do what normal couples do, come home from work, have dinner together, take vacations, visit friends and family. That kind of stuff. Sorry if that sounds lame.” Dean replied softly.

“No, it doesn’t sound lame. You told me we’d be equal. That’s still true? Will I be forced to submit at all?” Cas asked.

“No sweetheart. I watched the way my mom was treated and…I don’t want to do that to you or anyone, ever. I was raised mostly by Ellen and Bobby and she taught me that all people are equal and should be treated as such. And I never wanted a submissive. I’ve always wanted someone that I could talk to, that will call me out when I’m being an ass, and…will love me as much as I love them.” 

The last part came out barely above a whisper, and Cas heard the fear in the man’s voice. He was afraid Cas wouldn’t want to love him. He snuggled in closer, throwing a leg up and over Dean’s hip so that they were pressed against one another. His nose found its way to the Alpha’s throat and rubbed gently against the skin there.

“It would be my honor to be your mate Dean. And…I think I’m falling in love with you.” He heard the tiny gasp and felt as Dean’s body tensed.

“Yeah?”

Cas’ response was a slow lick against the freckled skin of the Alpha’s shoulder where his own mating bite would eventually be, and he purred. Dean tightened his arms around him.

“You have no idea how much that means to me.” And yes, the Alpha’s voice was tight as he tried not to cry.

“What about pups? I know you said you’re leaving that decision up to me too, but I want to know if you want them or not.” Cas nipped at the Alpha’s neck and he let out a soft whimper.

“I…do, but I’m scared. I didn’t have the best childhood, and I’m scared I’ll be a terrible father.” 

Cas pulled back again to look at him. “You are a wonderful man. I have faith that you will be an amazing father. Plus I will be here to knock some sense into you if you stray. I don’t think you will though. If you treat your children even half as well as you treat Sam and me, they will be amazing people that know they are well loved.”

Dean smiled and kissed the corner of Cas’ mouth. “So…you do want pups?”

Cas nodded slowly. “I used to not want them, out of fear that I would have an Alpha that would reject any Omega children I might produce, or that they would inflict harm on them. I don’t think you would do that though, so…I think would like to have pups, Dean, but only with you.”

“My kids are not getting sold, traded, or sent away. No matter their orientation. If we have Omegas they will stay here and I will arrange for any unmated ones to be cared for, for the rest of their lives. There is no way they’re going to The District, and no way will I allow for them to be forced into subjugation.” Dean said firmly. The light in the room was dim but he could see the dazzling smile on Cas’ face.

“Then I would absolutely love to be your mate, Dean.” Cas buried his face against the Alpha’s neck. His purring picked up in intensity, turning from a mating acceptance one to one of contentment. Dean’s courting had officially been accepted. He wanted to sob with joy.

“Cas…” He licked a strip up the Omega’s neck, earning a needy whimper in response.

“You just tell me when you’re ready angel, ok?”

Cas nodded. “I just…I’m scared. I need a little bit longer.”

“Scared of what?” Dean asked.

Cas bit down on his lower lip and looked up at him. Dean wouldn’t make fun of him, he was sure of it. 

“Being knotted. I’m…scared it will hurt.”

Dean did want to laugh, but he held it back. It was a valid fear. An Alpha knot was an intimidating and frightening prospect, especially to an Omega that had never taken one before. He would do everything in his power to be as gentle as possible and make the experience as pleasurable for his mate as he possibly could.

“We’ll take it slow sweetheart. I promise I’ll do everything in my power to make it good for you. The last thing I want to do is hurt you, ok?”

Cas had been tense but he relaxed and nodded. “I just need to survive this heat. When it’s over we can…we can do it.”

Dean smiled against the Omega’s hair. This was quite possibly the happiest day of his life.

“Let’s get some sleep, ok?” 

Cas purred in agreement and Dean thought that sound might be his favorite in the world. As he drifted off he thought of his beautiful Omega and the life they would have together. For the first time in the Alpha’s life his dreams were pleasant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yes, Lisa tried to challenge Cas and failed, but it helped them to realize how deep the true mate bond really goes. It will have a bit of a snowball effect that will come to light in the coming chapters.
> 
> So leave me a comment, let me know what you think.


	6. The Heat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas starts into his heat, and an unwanted Alpha comes snooping around the Winchester house.
> 
> Dean and Charlie have a talk about how he really feels about Cas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know you all are dying for long chapters, and I think 2,000+ words is long enough, and keep in mind, this is a WIP, so I'm still writing it while also working on the 30 Day Challenge AND doing a Tumblr challenge. And I'm trying to stay head so the chapters are good. I do hope you like this one, it's fluffy.

Cas woke just as the sun was coming up. He was hot all over, and he was painfully hard. It took him a moment to get his bearings and realize where he was. Sunlight was slowly beginning to filter into the room, and he could see the Alpha spread out on the bed next to him. Dean was on his stomach, his head turned towards Cas in his sleep, lips slightly parted. He wanted to just sit and count the freckles that peppered the Alpha’s nose and cheeks but the pressure building in his belly made it urgent for him to vacate the room. As smoothly as he could Cas slipped from the bed and crept to the door. With one last glance back, he smiled. One day soon he wouldn’t have to leave his mate’s side. He’d be able to stay and let Dean help him through his heats. Before he could change his mind and climb back into the warm bed he opened the door and left, closing the door quietly behind himself. Back in his own room he wrinkled his nose at the stale sex smell that filled the room. He found his phone and placed a quick call in to work to tell them he wouldn’t be in for the rest of the week, and why. 

As the pressure began to build Cas stripped out of his clothes. He didn’t want to ruin another pair of boxers, he didn’t have them to spare. The spike of arousal that began to fill him up was making him breathe heavily as he fumbled for the bottom drawer in the night stand. His eyes widened when he saw the myriad of toys sitting in it. He picked up a dildo that had a fake knot at the end and felt a jolt of fear. Dean had one of these at the base of his penis, and from what he had felt earlier, the Alpha was bigger than this toy. He wasn’t exactly sure how he felt about that. Carefully he put the toy back and selected a slender metal tube. He turned it over in his fingers, his curiosity getting the best of him when he saw a little switch at the base. He flicked it and cried out when it began to vibrate in his hands. His dick twitched excitedly as he imagined how this would feel inside him. Probably not as good as Dean’s fingers, but it would be interesting to try it out. There were a variety of lubes in the drawer as well, but with all the slick he was producing Cas knew he wouldn’t need any. With a deep breath he began to experiment.

Dean woke alone. He let out a whine of frustration as he pushed himself up on his elbows and looked around. There was a faint scent of slick in the room that told him the next wave of heat was probably already on Cas, so the Omega had returned to his own room. Sighing, he got up and got his day started. Today he had to go down to the nearest shop and get started on the inventory. He needed to call around to all of the shops and get them started on their own too. Most of that he could do from his home office, but he needed to still show his face down at the shop. He got dressed and went down to the kitchen to make breakfast. Sam was already there, reading his paper and sipping his standard cup of morning coffee.

“Hey, Sammy,” He greeted his brother. Sam set his paper down and looked up at him.

“Hey. So, how did last night go?”

Dean smiled so wide his cheeks hurt.

“It went very well. We talked a lot, and we’re pretty much on the same page about everything. He says he can feel the bond between us. He also got protective when I told him about what could happen if someone tried to claim me. He actually growled; it was adorable.”

Sam’s eyebrows scrunched up in a mixture of surprise and concern. “Adorable?”

“I’ve had people want me as their mate and want to claim me before, but I’ve never had someone want to tear out another person’s throat in order to stop it from happening. It’s just…” He waved the spatula he had picked up in the air as he tried to figure out the right words.

“It makes you feel genuinely loved and wanted?” Sam offered. Dean pointed the spatula at him.

“Yes! Not like I’m just a desirable Alpha that is wanted for what I can offer, but like I’m actually wanted just for who I am. Cas doesn’t make me feel like I’m just a source of income security to him. He really wants me just for me.”

Sam smiled. His brother was happier than he had been in years, and he liked seeing him this way.

“And you discussed when you’ll mate?”

Dean shrugged. “He accepted my mating request, quite enthusiastically if I might say so, but he’s not quite ready to be knotted. It’s a fear he has, and I am determined to make it not a terrifying experience for him. It’ll be a miserable pairing if every time I want to mate he’s always scared.”

“You know what? I’ll help with that. I can tell him what to expect, and how to make it…not scary. I was scared the first time too.” Sam lowered his eyes to his cup as though his coffee were the most fascinating thing in the world.

“You were scared? Really?” Dean asked.

“I was terrified to be honest, but that was back when he was kind and gentle with me. He went slow, and it was actually really good. I can’t say it always was after that though.” 

Sam felt uncomfortable having this talk with his brother but he wanted his brother to be happy, and he wanted Cas to be happy. If the sex became a point of contention, or something Cas came to fear, then they would be miserable. If he could help even with something so small, he would. He could tell his brother was mulling over his words as he pulled a carton of eggs from the fridge and a pan from the cabinet. 

“So, just…move slow?”

“Get him used to, uh, some other things…before you try to, uh, knot him. It’ll make the experience less frightening.” Sam was staring hard at his coffee, refusing to make eye contact with Dean, not that Dean wanted to look at him either. His attention was on the butter he was dropping into the pan.

“Don’t make Cas eggs, he’ll throw them up. Cook light during a heat,” Sam told him. 

“Oh, ok. So, what, oatmeal?” Dean asked.

“That would work. Something that does not have grease. Heats can make Omegas queasy and throwing up eggs or meat is not pleasant.”

Dean pulled out a pot and filled it with water to start the oatmeal.

“How do you know so much about Omegas? Even I didn’t know this stuff.”

“I like to research, but I’ve been doing more of it since you met Cas. So I could help out where you need it. I want things to work out between you guys,” Sam shrugged.

“Thanks man, I appreciate it,” Dean told him.

Dean made eggs and sausage for him and Sam, but he made a pot of oatmeal for Cas. He didn’t expect the Omega to make his way down to the kitchen though so when he slid onto the seat next to Sam the Alpha couldn’t help his surprise.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” Dean set a bowl of oatmeal in front of the man. Cas looked up at him, his expression weary.

“I’m tired. It’s already proven to be a long morning,” Cas admitted.

“It’s only a week, right?” Sam asked. Cas pursed his lips but nodded. He picked up the spoon and moved the oatmeal around but didn’t eat any.

“Did you already call in?” Dean asked.

“Yes, I did.”

Cas noticed Dean was dressed, complete with shoes.

“Are you leaving?”

“I have inventory for all the shops. I’ll be back this afternoon. I need to get it started at the shop here in town, but I’ll be back around two. I’ll be in my office at that point if you need me,” Dean replied.

Cas pulled nervously at the edge of his worn tee shirt, grimacing as the thin material actually tore.

“Oh, you need clothes still. I’ll leave a couple shirts and some shorts in your room this afternoon when I get back, and when you’re feeling better we’ll go shopping, ok?” 

Dean set his now empty plate in the sink and came around the island to stand next to Cas. It made him happier than he cared to admit when Cas reached out and wrapped his arms around the Alpha’s waist.

“You going to be ok?” Dean asked as he ran his fingers through the soft hair on the Omega’s head.

“Yes. I’ll just go back up to my room and rest once you leave.” Cas lifted his head and glanced over at Sam before looking up at Dean.

“Will I be here alone? No one can get in, can they?”

“I have classes this morning, so you will be alone for a while,” Sam said.

“The house is safe. It’s sealed so unless you go opening windows, no one will catch your scent or realize you’re in heat. I will set the alarm before I leave and lock the gates as well. Keep your phone close in case you need me. I’ll only be a few minutes away.” Dean pressed a kiss to Cas’ forehead, and the Omega sighed softly before hugging him tighter.

“Ok. I don’t mind being alone, I just…Alistair was only one of many that have…tried things. A door is not usually enough to deter them.”

“No one is getting in here. I spent a small fortune securing this place, but the previous owner had an Omega partner and several Omega pups, so they added things like reinforced doors, bars on the downstairs windows, and a few other features. There is a silent alarm that connects both to the police station and to my cell phone, so if anyone even thinks of stepping foot on my property when the alarm is set, I will know it.” 

Dean hoped his words were reassuring. Cas sat back, looking over at Sam as though he suddenly realized how his affection might appear to the man. Sam just smiled softly before getting up to place his plate in the sink.

“I have classes until one, then I’m meeting some people for a study session at the library. That will only last about an hour or two, depending on how much information we actually go over, but if for any reason you feel unsafe just give me a call and I’ll come right back.” 

“I don’t want to disrupt your life.” Cas shook his head. No, he didn’t want Sam to give anything up for him. He didn’t want Dean to either.

“It’s not a disruption, you’re family.” Sam gave him a reassuring smile before leaving to go gather his books. Cas turned his attention back to Dean.

“I’ll be fine. I doubt that I will leave my room much until you return, and probably not much after that. It’s still early in my heat, so I’m not overwhelmed by it yet. In another few days I won’t be able to leave my room at all. I’ll…need fluids, to stay hydrated.”

“Don’t worry, sweetheart, I’ll take care of you.” Dean couldn’t resist purring and nuzzling against the Omega. He smelled of heat, but underneath that was a scent that was distinctly Cas. It was quickly becoming his favorite thing to smell. 

“I…want this heat to just be over already,” Cas sighed.

“It will be. Until it is, just rest as much as you can, ok?” 

Cas nodded, letting out a pathetic whimper that he was embarrassed to hear himself make as the Alpha pulled back. Dean pushed the bowl of oatmeal closer.

“Eat up, you need sustenance. And I want you to put on some weight.”

Cas blushed and looked down at himself. He had forgotten that he was actually underweight by about fifty pounds. The oatmeal smelled good so he took a spoonful and ate it. It tasted good too. Dean watched him eat a few more spoonfuls before he left to go to his office. Cas could hear him already on the phone giving instructions on where to start the inventory. He wondered if the Alpha was talking to Charlie. Dean stopped once more to give him a kiss before he left. A few minutes later Sam left too. Alone, Cas ate as much of the oatmeal as he could stomach and saved the rest of it. He washed the dishes and went to stand at the sliding doors that overlooked the backyard. It really was quite barren and he wondered if, between his heat flares, he could look up flowers that would look nice in the large space. As he made his way out of the kitchen and up to the second floor he was unaware that he was being watched.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean arrived at the garage ten minutes after leaving the house. He went straight to his office, and it was only a few minutes later before Charlie walked in with a clipboard in hand.

“I’m about halfway through the tool inventory. Bobby is working on equipment. I called to Garth in Tulsa, and they are about three quarters finished. I’m making calls to all of the shops. I had to get on Phil in Hannibal. They are short staffed after two of their Omegas were attacked, so they’re scrambling to get in some new hires, but he’s starting the inventory. By the end of tomorrow we should have reports in from everyone,” she told him.

“Alright, good. I need to know what to order so we stay stocked up on the basic parts.” He turned on his computer and pulled up his email. Inventory reports were starting to come in already. That pleased him. Three hundred and eighty four shops and he already had in eighty nine reports. He pulled up the program Charlie had designed that allowed him to select the products that needed restocking rather than taking each shop one by one and determining which ones were low on what. Once the item was determined to be low the program would tell him which shops were lowest, and he could place the order directly for that shop. It made his job infinitely easier.

“Why is it that Chicago East always needs new sets of wrenches? I don’t get it,” he grumbled to himself.

“Maybe you need to take a trip up there and see how they’re organizing things. Check out your employees, too, make sure they’re not stealing.” Charlie had sat down in one of the chairs across from him.

“Yeah, it’s been a while since I’ve been up there,” he sighed.

“I think they’re taking advantage because you’re not there much. If you don’t want to go I can arrange for someone else to go. I could go if you want me to,” she said.

“No, just…book me a hotel room for the first of June. I’ll drive up and surprise them.”

She nodded, pulling a tablet out and scheduling the date.

“So.”

He glanced up at her. She was about to get nosey.

“So, what?” 

“How’s home life?” she asked. She certainly did NOT sound casual.

“It’s good. Cas is settling in nicely. I tried to take him out for dinner last night but it was a huge fiasco. Lisa was there. She actually tried to challenge Cas, but he shut her down real quick. Unfortunately it triggered an early heat, so he’s at home feeling rather miserable.” He sat back in his chair and ran both hands through his hair.

“You smell like him, but you don’t smell mated. How come?” she asked.

“Because we’re waiting til his heat is over. It’s his choice. He finally accepted my mating request but…he’s a virgin. Like, he’s never even taken a fake knot, so he’s scared shitless. I’m not forcing him into mating with me. He wants to, he said so, but he’s just scared.”

“Wow…he’s a lovely little unicorn, isn’t he?”

Dean frowned. “What?”

“A unicorn, rare and special. Not too many Omegas that can hang on to their virginity for very long, and he’s not young. He must be smart and creative at avoiding all the knotheads out there,” she replied.

“He’s amazing. Omegas don’t get nearly enough credit for their intelligence, it all gets poured onto the Betas, but Cas is wicked smart. Dude has a rather impressive vocabulary too. He actually sounds smarter than Sam when he talks,” Dean laughed.

Charlie grinned. “I didn’t think that was possible.”

“Neither did I! But he does. I’m so excited to like, officially take him as my mate. He’s so sexy.” He blushed as he realized that had actually been said and not just thought.

“He’s nice looking, for a guy. Did you guys like…fool around?” She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, and he blushed so hard he could feel the tips of his ears burning. 

“I maybe sort of helped him a little last night,” he reluctantly admitted.

“Was that a first for him too?”

He didn’t think he could blush harder but apparently he could. His face was now on fire.

“Yes, ok? He’d never been touched before. At all.” 

Charlie snickered, a knowing grin in her face. “But he was ok this morning? No embarrassment?”

“No, and he…came in my room last night afterwards. Just to sleep.”

She leaned forward, putting her arms on his desk.

“He needed to be near you is what it sounds like.”

“Sam said he looked up what happened last night with Lisa and that there’s a bond already between Cas and me, and we have to be careful ’cause if anyone tried to lay a claim on me, it would kill him. I am eager for his heat to be over so we can seal the bond and no one can break it.”

“I heard about that. Only happens with true mates, and it’s supposed to be pretty damn rare. You really did find your unicorn,” she mused.

“Is it stupid that I’m already in love with him?” 

Her eyebrows rose up at hearing that. “Really?”

He chewed on his lower lip as he nodded. “Yeah. He told me last night that he’s falling in love with me, but I’m already there.” 

“You two are sickeningly adorable, you know that?” 

He rolled his eyes and went back to typing on the computer.

“Yeah, well, being adorable doesn’t get the inventory done now does it?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, someone is snooping around.
> 
> Yes, I'm actually going to make you wait until Sunday to find out who.
> 
> Quit griping. you know you love me.
> 
> Leave a comment!


	7. The Bond

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas is miserable in his heat so Dean heads out to buy him things he will need to get through it comfortably. While he is out, he runs into Lisa. The confrontation is felt through the bond, and it drives Cas crazy. When Dean gets home he learns that they had an unwanted visitor while he was out. 
> 
> Someone just isn't taking the hint.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was so super busy today, but I didn't forget to post. Here you go! I hope you all enjoy it!

Cas felt the next wave coming about an hour after Dean and Sam left. He explored with the toys provided, however he avoided the one with the knot. Instinctively he knew that one would satisfy him the most but he couldn’t help but want Dean to be the first knot, real or fake, that he took. The variety of vibrators and slimmer dildos in the drawer were taking the edge off, despite his growing needs. It was nearly one when he heard the phone chirping on the night stand. He had just gotten off for the third time that day and could barely keep his eyes open, but the only person that ever texted him was Dean, so he grabbed the phone and opened the text.

Dean: Are you ok? Silent alarm went off. Cameras caught a man nosing around along the back fence.

Cas felt it as the fear tore through him. Was he really safe here?

Cas: I’m ok, but you’re certain he cannot get in?

Dean: I’m on my way home. Already halfway there. 

Cas: Ok. Please, hurry.

He set the phone aside and forced himself to get up and take a shower. When he was finished he wrapped a towel around his waist and returned to his bedroom to find Dean sitting on the edge of his bed. It was apparent that the Alpha was using every ounce of restraint he had in the presence of such strong pheromones. The room was heavy with the scent of heat and slick. He looked up at Cas, blinking and shaking his head.

“You’re ok.” It wasn’t a question, and Cas could hear the relief in the man’s voice.

“I’m fine. Just needed another shower.” Cas hitched the towel up on his waist a bit more before moving forward to stand between Dean’s open legs. Dean’s hands flexed where they rested on his own thighs.

“You can touch me Dean, I like it when you do,” he said softly. Dean’s hands came up to run up Cas’ legs, disappearing under the towel as they came to rest over the firm muscles in his ass. The Omega gasped, leaning forward and putting his arms around Dean’s neck. Slowly Dean maneuvered him until Cas was straddling him. 

“I think I recognized the Alpha. It was that creep from your apartment,” he said. Cas stiffened in his arms, blue eyes widening in fear.

“No, how did he know where you live? Please don’t let him get in here!” Cas clung to him, whimpering and shaking.

“He’s not going to touch you, I swear,” Dean promised.

Alistair had been, by far, the worst Alpha to ever come after Cas. And he was relentless in his pursuit. For him to follow Cas all the way to Dean’s house knowing the chances were good that the Omega had already been claimed was proof of the man’s mental instability. He feared for Dean’s life.

“Claiming me won’t stop him. He’s a monster,” Cas whispered. Dean held him tighter.

“You’re safe sweetheart,” the Alpha told him as he gently caressed the bare skin of the Omega’s back. When Cas looked at him next his expression was grim.

“It’s not me that I’m worried about.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After calming Cas down and promising he wouldn’t leave the house for the next few days, Dean went downstairs to fetch some water and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for his mate. He hummed as he slathered the peanut butter on the bread, lost in thought about his upcoming trip to Chicago, but the alert tone blaring out of his phone made him freeze. He grabbed the phone from his pocket and pulled the exterior cameras up. Someone was actually skulking around on the west side of the house, near where Cas’ bedroom was. A snarl tore from his lips as he rushed out the back door and around the side of the house. He glanced up at Cas’ bedroom window before moving across the yard to the fence line. 

“Who’s there?!” he demanded.

Something was kicked or fell over on the far side of the fence. A silent alert on Dean’s phone told him the police were on their way.

“Who the fuck is there?!” He added a warning growl to his demand, but whoever was on the other side of the nine foot privacy fence was not answering. The pounding of footsteps echoed over the fence and then someone was snarling, jaws snapping as they were thrown to the ground by the officers.

“That you there, Dean? Or is that Sam?” A familiar voice was asking.

“Jody? It’s me, Dean.” 

“I’ll be around to the front door in a minute. Let me get this fool in the back of the car.”

“I’ll meet you at the gate,” he told her.

He went back through the house, stopping to listen as he passed the stairs but Cas was safe in his room and due to soundproofing had most likely not heard the altercation outside. He went out the front door and down the steps, crossing the yard to the gates where Jody was waiting for him. 

“Give me a sec to turn off the alarm.” He told her as he did exactly that. When it was off he opened the gate but instead of letting her in, he stepped out onto the sidewalk. She frowned at his behavior.

“Not going to invite me in?” she asked.

“Don’t take offense, Jody, but if my father were still alive I wouldn’t even let him inside. My mate is in there, and he’s in heat,” he explained. He turned the alarm back on just out of sheer paranoia. 

One eyebrow raised as she looked up at the house. “You decided to finally take a mate? An Omega I’m assuming since he’s in heat. When did this happen?”

“He’s my true mate, actually. And I won’t even let Sam near him in his current state. Only in between his flashes, and never unless I’m there. We only met a couple of days ago, but…” He leaned closer and lowered his voice so the other officers nearby couldn’t hear. “I have not claimed him just yet. We’re waiting until after his heat is over. He’s…pure, and he’s scared. I’m not forcing myself on him.”

“Ahh,” she nodded knowingly. 

“Has this been ongoing since he came to stay here?” 

“Not until today. I got an alert earlier that someone was lurking around the property so I came home. I was making him lunch when the alert went off again.”

She motioned for Dean to follow her. “Do you know him?” She pointed at the back of a squad car where a man was snarling and snapping as he strained against his handcuffs. To Dean’s surprise, it was not Alistair.

“No actually, I don’t know him.”

“Might your Omega?” she asked.

“Can I take a picture of this guy and text it to him?” he asked. She looked at the guy in the car for a moment before nodding. 

“Normally I’d tell you to bring him out here, but my men…they’re all unmated Alphas. I like to say I trust them, but even I can smell the Omega on you and they’re agitated by it. So yeah, go ahead, take the picture.”

Dean lifted his phone to snap the picture before the guy in the car even knew what was happening. He texted the picture to Cas and waited, hoping the man would respond quickly. It was a relief when less than a minute later Cas responded.

Cas: That’s Azazel, Alistair’s brother. Az. is a pimp in TD. Why do you have a picture of him?

Dean: He was just arrested lurking around the house. Needed to know if you knew him. I’ll bring lunch up in a few, and we’ll talk then.

He shoved the phone back in his pocket.

“He says the guy’s name is Azazel, a pimp from The Omega District. He’s the brother of the Alpha that has been ceaselessly harassing my mate. That man’s name is Alistair.”

Jody’s eyebrows shot up. “Alistair Crane?”

Dean shrugged. “I’m not sure. I just know what he looks like and what he smells like. Your people arrested him earlier this week when he tried to force his way into Cas’ apartment. Bastard tried to rape my mate.” He could feel his temper rising at the memory.

“Whoa, calm down there, he’s not getting near your Omega. And since when did your eyes start glowing red?” she asked.

“What?” He blinked, his eyes returning to their normal green.

“Your eyes just now, they were blood red. It was kind of freaky,” she replied.

His thoughts turned to Cas’ eyes glowing golden the night before.

“Huh.”

“Care to share with the rest of the class?” she asked.

“I can’t be sure, but I think it has to do with this special bond Cas and I have. Even though I haven’t yet claimed him, there’s some kind of rare bond going on, and last night my ex challenged him, and his eyes glowed gold. It was kind of freaky, but it got her to back right down.” 

“I’ve never heard of that before. Is it related to just true mates?” 

He nodded. “Apparently it is.”

“Who challenged him, Lisa?”

Dean sighed. “Yes. I tried to take Cas out for a romantic dinner, and she was there.”

Jody winced. “Yikes. Maybe it’s time for a fresh start? Take your Omega and move somewhere with safer laws and maybe fewer ex-girlfriends.”  
`  
Dean rolled his eyes. “It won’t be an issue once I claim him. A true mate bond can’t be broken, so they can pine away but it’ll be useless.”

“Look at you, you little heart breaker,” she smirked. He grinned and shrugged.

“I may have broken a heart or two, but mostly I was just waiting for Cas.”

She smiled warmly. “He’s a nice Omega then?”

“He’s the best. Maybe next month I’ll throw a barbecue and you can come and meet him. He’s a teacher, very smart guy,” he replied, the pride evident in his voice.

“I would like that. For now we’re going to get this guy down to the station. I can really only book him for trespassing. He’ll be out in twenty four hours. If he comes back or Alistair shows up, the alarm will alert us, but if you feel in danger call me directly.”

He nodded and watched her leave, getting into her own squad car and driving away. When the last car was gone he looked nervously around. Neighbors were being nosey, standing on their front lawns, watching the drama as it unfolded. Not wanting to be the subject of anymore attention he turned the alarm off and went inside. Once the front door was locked he turned the alarm back on.

“Was Alistair here?”

Dean jumped, spinning around to find Cas standing there, dressed in one of the tee shirts and a pair of shorts he had given him earlier.

“No baby, he wasn’t; Azazel was the only one here.”

Cas frowned, his fingers tugging absently at the hem of the shirt.

“You’re sure?”

“I’m sure. It was just Azazel, but they arrested him. If he comes back I’ll file a restraining order, and if need be, I’ll take more drastic measures. No one is getting near you.” Dean moved closer but stopped when the Omega flinched.

“What’s wrong?” Dean asked.

“I shouldn’t have come down, it’s already starting again, but I was scared.” Cas told him. His blue eyes were full of worry. Dean closed the rest of the gap, pulling him into his arms. 

“It’s alright. I’ll be here the rest of the day. Why don’t you join me in the kitchen so I can give you your lunch?”

Dean took Cas by the hand and took him to the kitchen. He tossed the half-made sandwich and started a new one for him. Cas stood at the counter watching him, a soft smile on his lips. It warmed his heart knowing he had an Alpha that loved him (He knew Dean loved him even if he hadn’t said it yet.) and wanted to provide for him.

“Have a seat, gorgeous.” Dean nodded towards the bar stools.

“No, I-I’ll stand if that’s alright. I can’t, um, stop leaking.” Cas’ cheeks burned at the admission, and he lowered his eyes to the marble countertop.

“Oh. Why, uh, do I not really smell it strong?” Dean asked.

“I don’t have pads so I used some toilet paper to soak up the flow so I could come see what was going on,” Cas replied.

“Oh, I’ll get you pads. Anything else you need?”

Cas shook his head. He accepted the sandwich as Dean slid the plate over to him. 

“Eat up, I’ll get you a cold bottle of water too.” Dean swapped out the one that had been sitting on the counter for a cold one from the fridge. He set that down next to Cas’ plate before cleaning up the mess he had made. A few minutes later Cas whimpered and pushed the plate away. Dean was immediately at his side.

“What’s wrong?”

Cas doubled over as the cramps began.

“It’s…” Cas grunted and grimaced as he rubbed at his lower abdomen. “Normal. Do you have something for pain that I could take?”

Dean grabbed the bottle of water and guided Cas back upstairs. He stopped in his own bathroom to grab a bottle of ibuprofen before returning to his mate and walking him back to his room. The entire room stank and the sheets were soaked with slick. It made the Alpha dizzy.

“You can’t sleep on this mess. Come on.” 

He took Cas back to his own room and helped him lie down. Once he was settled back against the pillows, Dean doled out a dose of the medicine and gave it to him along with the bottle of water.

“Will a heating pad help?” Dean asked.

“I hear heat helps,” Cas replied.

Dean went back to his bathroom, returning a few seconds later with the heating pad. He lifted the blankets to lay it across Cas’ abdomen and then plugged it in. Cas’ eyes were closed but there was a frown still on his lips. After a few minutes the frown faded and the Omega sighed as the heat finally began to ease his cramps.

“Oh…that feels good,” he sighed.

“I’ll go and change the bedding in your room so you aren’t trying to lay on wet sheets. Take a nap, I’ll get you up in a little while.” Dean smoothed a lock of damp hair back from Cas’ forehead and pressed a kiss to the smooth skin there. Cas opened his eyes and smiled up at him.

“Thank you, Dean, for everything.”

Dean smiled and winked as he headed out of the room. In Cas’ room he moved quickly to strip the bed. He was glad for mattress pads as he shoved all the soiled bedding into the washing machine and started the load. He pulled clean linens and a new mattress pad from the cabinet in the hall and went back to make the bed back up. He was just smoothing the flat sheet down when he heard someone clear their throat from the doorway.

“Cas in your room?” Sam asked.

“Yeah, he’s cramping pretty bad but his bed stank to high heaven, and it was soaking wet, so I sent him there til I could change it all out.” Dean didn’t bother looking up as he put the blankets on the bed and smoothed them out.

 

“Does he need anything?” Sam asked.

“Will you stay here with him while I run to the store in a little bit?” 

“Sure,” Sam replied.

“Thanks.” 

With the bed made Dean backtracked to his own room. There was something wonderful about seeing the Omega curled up in his bed sound asleep. He didn’t want to wake the man, but blue eyes blinked and opened anyway. He smiled at Dean.

“My bed ready?”

“Yeah. You-you can stay in here, if you want,” Dean told him.

“I would love to stay in here, but I can feel it about to start again, and unfortunately it’s rather messy. Can I take the heating pad with me? It’s helping.”

Dean walked over to the bed and helped him get up. “Of course.” 

He unplugged the heating pad and walked Cas back to his own room. Tenderly he tucked Cas in and plugged the heating pad back in. He slid it under the blankets and laid it across Cas’ belly. The Omega sighed in contentment at the heat.

“I am so used to just suffering through the cramps. This is nice.”

Dean swept another lock of hair off Cas’ head and leaned down to kiss him. “I’m going to the store to get something for the cramps, and to get you some pads. I need a few other things too. Did you want anything else?”

Cas shook his head. “I don’t think so. You’ve already given me so much.”

Dean preened a bit at that, he couldn’t help it. He wanted to be a good Alpha and provide for his mate.

“Alright then. Sam’s back, so if you need anything at all, just text him. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Cas nodded and closed his eyes. He was determined to get some more sleep before the next wave hit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The ride to the store was short, but finding what he needed took a bit longer. He was searching the shelves when he caught a familiar scent. With a frustrated groan he turned around to find himself face to face with Lisa.

“Go away,” He told her. She looked up and down the aisle.

“Where’s your Omega?” Her tone was clipped. Obviously she was still ticked.

“None of your business.” He moved around her to grab a pack of pads off the shelf. He hoped they would be absorbent enough. Now he just wanted to get out of the store and go home.

“Where does he get off thinking he can even challenge me? He’s a goddamn OMEGA!” Her voice had risen to where she was almost yelling. 

“He wasn’t the one that started shit, YOU were. You pushed after I said no, so he stepped in. Whether you like it or not, Lisa, he’s my true mate, the ONLY person I’ve ever wanted in my life, and the only person I will ever want. So you need to back the hell off and stop being a bitch! I’m not interested!” His own voice had risen. He was done with her shit already.

“Dean, we had something special, you can’t tell me we didn’t. I don’t understand how you could just walk away, and then randomly show up with some Omega bitch on your arm, acting like you’re in love. It’s not fair to me.” She ran a hand up his arm as she moved into his personal space. He barked out a bitter laugh and pushed her back.

“I’m not randomly showing up places with any Omega on my arm, I took my TRUE MATE out for dinner at a romantic restaurant because that’s what LOVING COUPLES DO. And I’m not acting! I DO love him! You need to back the fuck off already. I broke up with you over a year ago and if I didn’t get back together with you since then I’m sure as hell not now that I have found my true mate.”

He bared his fangs and his eyes began to glow red. Lisa gasped and took a step back.

“What the hell is wrong with your eyes?!”

Dean knew it was the bond working its magic again. He just growled, low and deep, and she finally took the hint. When she turned and practically ran from the aisle he breathed a sigh of relief. He went in search of another heating pad and the medicine for the cramps. As he was going over the different bottles his phone rang. He felt a twinge of fear when he saw it was Sam calling.

“Sammy? Everything ok?” He asked as soon as the phone was at his ear.

“Did you just challenge or make a threat against someone again? Cas is totally freaking out; I can’t calm him down!” 

Dean could hear the Omega yelling in the background but not what he was yelling about.

“I ran into Lisa. She wouldn’t back off so I sort of went super Alpha on her. I think my eyes turned red cause it scared her and she ran off.”

“But you’re ok?” He could tell Sam was saying it loud enough for Cas to hear.

“Yes, I’m fine,” Dean replied.

“Cas, he’s fine,” Sam was saying. Cas was getting louder.

“Dean?! Dean, you’re really ok?!” Cas was asking suddenly. Apparently he had wrested the phone away from Sam.

“Yes baby, I’m fine. I ran into Lisa and she tried some crap, but I got rid of her,” He replied. Cas growled. It made Dean smile knowing the Omega felt protective over him.

“If I ever see her again…”

“Don’t worry, we’ll be officially mated by then and she won’t be able to do or say squat. Go lie down, I’ll be home shortly with your medicine.” Dean’s voice took on a soothing tone and Cas’ growling slowly subsided.

“Be careful, please!”

“I will. I’ll be home in about twenty minutes.”

Sam was suddenly back on the phone.

“Could you hurry up before your mate claws my eyes out? Little shit’s quite strong for an Omega.” 

Dean laughed as he selected three different types of Omega heat related medications and added them to his basket. 

“I’ll be home in twenty.”

“Good, see you then,” Sam huffed before disconnecting. Dean shoved the phone in his pocket and made his way to the clothing department. For a moment he found himself pausing in front of the maternity section. It sent a small thrill through him to imagine Cas carrying his pup. Sure, Cas was older but Omegas remained fertile for much longer than female Alphas or Betas, especially male Omegas who could remain fertile up into their sixties. He and Cas had plenty of time yet to have pups. He ran his fingers across a blue birthing gown the same color as Cas’ eyes. If and when the Omega got pregnant he was coming back for this.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He found the underwear section and grabbed three packs of boxer briefs for Cas. They would be easier for him to put the pad in than regular boxers would, he reasoned, not to mention the Omega would look incredibly sexy in them. A few new tee shirts and some sweats were added to the growing pile of stuff he was carrying before he made his way to the cashier. He was rung up quickly and back on the road to go home just a few minutes later.

When Dean walked in the front door he heard voices.

“Sam? Cas?” He called out as he reset the alarm.

Heavy footsteps on the stairs told him Sam was coming downstairs. The Beta looked thoroughly exasperated.

“Cas ok?” Dean asked him.

“Yeah, yeah, but we had a visitor while you were gone. Didn’t bother slinking around the perimeter this time, so it didn’t trigger the alarm. He came straight to the front gate. It was that Alistair guy. Asshole was screaming into the speaker for me to send Cas out. Says Cas is his; he owns him. I called the police and they sent a car out. He ran off before they got here, but I think he’ll be back.”

Dean didn’t even realize he was growling as he marched past his brother and up the stairs. Cas was apparently back in his room but the heavy scent of his heat permeated the hall. He knocked on the Omega’s door, and a second later it flew open.

“Dean!” Cas cried. He threw himself at the Alpha and Dean had to drop the bags he was carrying in order to catch him.

“It’s ok, I’m ok,” Dean assured him.

“Alistair was here! I still don’t understand how they figured out your address!”

“I drove right into The District. He probably deduced that I’m the Alpha challenging his claim based on the tow truck. A lot of people know where I live, it’s not private record, so he must have gotten my address and come here thinking he could easily get in. I’m going to call my lawyer and see about filing a restraining order against him so he can’t come near the house or either of our jobs.” 

Dean guided Cas to the bed and untangled his arms. “Sit, I have stuff for you.”

He backtracked to grab the bags he’d come in with, kicking the door shut as he went.

“What is all of that?” Cas asked, smiling. Dean knelt down in front of him and began digging around in the bags. He produced the medicines first.

“I wasn’t sure which one would work best, but these all handle cramps as well as a couple of other issues.” He handed them over. Cas read the labels before setting two of the bottles aside. He opened the third one and popped two pills in his mouth.

“I got you some new boxer briefs and some clothes to lounge around in too. Oh, and here.” Dean handed him the pads. Cas blushed as he accepted them.

“Don’t be embarrassed. I’m happy to buy them for you if they make you more comfortable,” Dean told him. Cas smiled a little brighter.

“Thank you, Dean.” He excused himself, grabbing one of the new packages of underwear and the pads, and headed to the bathroom. Dean took the time to fold the new clothes neatly and set them in one of the dresser drawers. The meager amount of clothing that Cas had brought with was already folded and placed in one drawer and Dean set the new ones down next to them. When Cas returned to the room he seemed surprised to see Dean was still there.

“Better?” Dean asked. Cas smiled shyly and nodded.

“Regular boxers are not the best for handling a heat. They do nothing to stop the slick. These are much more comfortable and…the pad fits nicely.” The last part was spoken in almost a whisper.

Dean chuckled. “That’s what I assumed. I’ll get you more before you run out.”

Cas walked over and wrapped his arms around Dean’s waist. “I felt your agitation earlier. I knew something was wrong, I just didn’t know what.”

Dean pulled him closer and pressed his nose to the Omega’s neck. He licked a strip across the spot where he was dying to lay his claim and Cas moaned.

“All challenges and claims will stop soon enough. You’re the only one I have eyes for,” he murmured against the Omega’s heated skin as he held him closer. Cas purred and pressed his body closer. Dean knew an Omega in heat was especially demanding of physical contact, but he didn’t mind it. After years of barely ever touching anyone he found himself craving it. Cas’ stomach gurgled and they both heard it.

“I’m a little hungry.” Cas looked up at him and Dean took the opportunity to kiss the tip of his nose.

“I’ll go make something to eat. I’m sure Sam’s hungry, too.” 

He walked Cas back to the bed and tucked him back in. Back out in the hall he found Sam lingering.

“You’re sure Alistair can’t get in, right?” Sam asked as they walked down to the kitchen.”

“Did Luke ever get in here?” Dean countered as he went to the cabinet and began pulling out pans.

“Well…no,” Sam reluctantly answered.

“Then Alistair isn’t either.”

“This guy is way more aggressive than Luke was. He’s downright scary,” Sam said as he sat down at the island to watch Dean cook.

“I can add security staff if you’re worried. What do you think of us getting a couple of guard dogs?” Dean glanced back at his brother to see Sam smiling.

“I’d feel more comfortable with a dog, yeah. Something bigger. A shepherd maybe? Something that appears to be a pet but is trained to protect. Perhaps a former police dog?” Sam said.

“I’ll call Jody tomorrow, see if they have anything like that. Maybe hire some off duty cops to patrol the property too. At least for a while.” 

“Good idea. But I think you should call her today,” Sam said. Dean wanted to get off the subject.

“You want grilled cheese? I’m going to make grilled cheese and tomato soup,” he announced.

“Yeah, sure.” 

“Good. Get a tray so I can make some for Cas too.”

Sam knew the subject was closed, so he did as his brother asked. As long as Dean made the call at all he was happy, and he knew his brother would make it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So at this point you all are probably dying for some smut. Well, you'll be glad to know it's coming next chapter. Can't rush these things for poor, frightened Cas!
> 
> Let me know what you all think. Leave me a comment. Catch you all later!


	8. I Love You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas' heat is over. In an attempt to help alleviate some of the Omega's fears, Sam opens up about the experience he'd had with his own Alpha. He sticks to the good memories and lets him know that Dean will take his time like a good Alpha should, and that being nervous is normal. Cas takes his words to heart.
> 
> Aware of just how patient his Alpha has been, he decides the man has waited long enough, and that it's time to mate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know you've all been waiting for this. I hope it lives up to your expectations. Have no fear, Dean is a gentleman.

The rest of Cas’ heat was relatively uneventful. Dean stayed close, making sure Cas stayed hydrated and well fed. Despite having a poor appetite, the Omega was actually putting some weight on, and that pleased the Alpha immensely. Cas was humming softly to himself as he changed the linens on his bed. He was putting fresh ones on when he heard someone knock on the door frame. The door was open, and he turned around to find Sam standing there.

“Hello Sam, is there something I can help you with?”

Sam fidgeted slightly, crossing arms and rubbing nervously at the exposed skin there.

“I was hoping maybe I could help you.”

Cas raised an eyebrow at that. “Help me how exactly?”

“Can we just talk for a minute? Dean and I, we don’t um, have too many secrets, though there’s stuff that goes on between you guys that I just have no desire to know anything about. So I don’t want you thinking he’s like going to give me details on your sex life or anything. He’s actually really private so he wouldn’t even if I asked, which I would never do,” Sam was babbling and Cas was trying to figure out exactly what he was attempting to get at.

“Sam, what exactly did you want to talk about? How did you think you could help me?”

Sam was barefoot and he pulled at the carpet fibers with his toes.

“Dean said you’re a virgin.”

Cas tensed. 

“I don’t see how you could possibly help me.”

Sam realized that Cas’ scent had suddenly grown nervous, and there were hints of fear in it too. He rolled his eyes and groaned.

“No, dude, I’m not trying to like….ewww. I just thought maybe I could tell you what it was like when I got together with my Alpha. So you, like, know what to expect.”

Cas relaxed, his scent returning to normal. He motioned towards the chair in the corner.

“Come in, we can talk.”

Sam crossed the room and dropped into the chair. Cas sat down slowly on the edge of the bed near where the Beta sat and folded his hands neatly in his lap. He had to admit, starting into a sexual relationship with Dean was equally exciting and terrifying since he no idea what to expect.

“Dean said you had an Alpha, but he mistreated you. He promises not to hurt me.”

“Dean won’t hurt you. He’s a much better Alpha than mine was. But in the beginning, when he first courted me, he was quite charming. What I tell you about him, it stays between you and me. Not even Dean knows all of this, ok?” Sam stared hard at him. Clearly it was something worse than what Dean had thought if he didn’t want the Alpha to know. Cas nodded.

“You have my word.”

Sam relaxed, giving a soft smile and a nod. “So that you know, Luke…he was everything Dean is not. Dean may see himself as unworthy or bad, but that’s because of things our father ingrained in him when we were kids. Our father was a monster, to put it lightly, but Dean…he’s a good man, and his soul shines brightly. I’m sure you already realized that. Anyway, Dean comes off as friendly because he truly is. He’s honest and doesn’t pretend to be something he isn’t. Luke was oily like a snake, but I didn’t realize that at first. He was handsome, and he treated me wonderfully. I didn’t submit to his advances right away though, I held out for three months. I was young and he was much older, but he was persistent. I was twenty two, fresh out of college with a brand new law degree when I decided to accept his mating request. I had never so much as even been kissed when Luke took me to his bed. That first year we spent together, it’s not something I regret at all. It’s all the time we spent together after that which I regret.”

Sam leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees and dropped his voice. 

“My first time was good because Luke took his time with me. He did everything he could to alleviate my fears, and he was incredibly gentle. I was scared of his knot, just like I know you are. It can go one of several ways with an Alpha. They’re either gentle, they’re cruel, or they’re indifferent. You want to stay away from the indifferent ones, they’re almost as bad as the cruel ones.”

“Which was Luke?” Cas asked.

“In the beginning? He was gentle. As time wore on he became indifferent, and I learned the hard way what a cruel streak he really had. This is a big area where Luke differs from my brother. Dean is, in personality in general, strong but gentle. I know that when he tells me he won’t hurt you, he really won’t. You’re safe with him. I know he loves you. Luke…pretended to love me. He wanted a submissive. I was later told he wanted a strong, attractive Beta to show off, but that he had never really felt much towards me. I, on the other hand, fell hard for the bastard.”

Sam sighed deeply and ran a hand through his shoulder length brown hair.

“Let me back up to the part that really matters. You’re nervous, right? About taking a knot?”

Cas blushed and lowered his eyes to his folded hands. “Y-yes. I’ve never…” He motioned with one hand.

“I know, I get it,” Sam said. “And you don’t have to be embarrassed with me. I was there too just a few years ago. I damn near had a panic attack my first time.”

Cas was surprised by that. He had a hard time imagining all six foot four inches of the strapping male Beta sitting across from him being scared to take a knot.

“So, how did you get past that? Was it painful at all?”

“It could have been, but he was gentle. I lack something important that you have. I do not produce slick. Your slick goes a long way towards making the entire experience more enjoyable, but Luke took his time, and I trusted him, and honestly? I know I’m dating a female Beta, but I miss that part of the relationship with an Alpha. I miss the fullness of taking a knot, and just how damn good it feels. I can only give in my current relationship. I don’t know how much you know about Beta anatomy. Usually they only teach Betas their own anatomy, and same for Alphas and Omegas.”

Cas nodded. “True, I was only taught Omega anatomy. What little else I’ve learned was from experience or by reading about it. If I remember correctly Beta females lack secondary genitalia, just like Omega females. Only Omega males and Alpha females have both. Alpha males only have one set of sex organs too. Beyond that, I don’t know very much.”

“Well, Betas don’t produce slick, neither do Alphas. Only Alphas, male and female both have a knot, though a male Alpha’s knot it supposed to be bigger. Now, that being said, don’t be scared. An Omega’s body is designed to take that knot. Your body will stretch to accommodate it better than a Beta’s body will, so it will be infinitely less painful if the Alpha is careful and opens you up properly,” Sam explained. Cas frowned as he tried to picture what Sam meant.

“Open me up. Do you mean…with his fingers?”

Sam nodded. “Exactly.”

Cas chewed on the inside of his cheek as he remembered how good it had felt the one time Dean had touched him like that, and how good his fingers had felt. There hadn’t been much of the “opening up” though that he thought Sam was referring to.

“We…well, he….but it wasn’t like….he didn’t really open anything…” Cas tugged at the hem of his shirt. Sam held up a hand to stop him right there.

“Yeah, don’t want to know the details. What I still suggest though is to let him open you up. Don’t rush him. Even if you feel ready, you’re probably not, so as the Alpha, just let him do it and it’ll make the entire experience damn close to mind blowing. If what he helped you with that night felt good, this is like that, but a hundred times better.” 

Cas nodded. “I will heed your suggestion in this matter. Thank you, Sam, for telling me this. It eases many of my concerns. I trust Dean, and I know he would never purposely hurt me, but now I know what not to rush from my end as well. I appreciate your forthrightness.”

Sam stood up and nodded, a goofy grin on his face. “So, whenever you’re ready, I’m positive Dean will be responsive. He’s dying to tie you, but mostly because he’s so in love with you. Follow my advice though, and the sex will be something you’ll quickly learn to enjoy.”

Cas stood up as well. “I know he is. I believe I am ready now. I don’t want to wait any longer.”

Sam cocked an eyebrow, his grin fading. “Oh, uh, good for you. TMI, but ok. I think I’m going to go to the library.”

Cas chuckled as he watched Sam hurry from the room. The Beta sure did move quickly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was Saturday, and Cas followed Dean’s scent down to the first floor. Dean was in his office crunching numbers when he heard a soft knock at his door.

“Come in.”

The door opened and Cas stuck his head in.

“Hey, you busy?”

Dean looked at the computer screen in front of him and sighed.

“I’m going over the accounting for the one of the shops in Tulsa. The numbers aren’t adding up. I think either someone is stealing money or someone isn’t doing inventory right.”

“Mind if I take a look? I actually started getting my degree in mathematics. I enjoy crunching numbers.” Cas stepped all the way into the room but stayed near the door in case Dean told him to leave.

“Nah, come on over. If I’m missing something and you catch it I’ll be in debt to you. I’m tired of going over the numbers for this shop. Every month it’s like this.” Dean got up from his chair and motioned for Cas to sit, which he did. He stood behind the chair and watched as Cas took a moment to learn the system and then began going over the numbers.

“Well, first thing I notice is that someone is not recording the correct number of parts that are ordered. See here? You ordered six catalytic converters, whatever those are, but you only sold four. That leaves two unaccounted for, yet your inventory states you have zero in stock. Unless they shipped them to another of your shops, I’m afraid someone is stealing from you,” Cas said as he looked up at him.

“That’s what I was afraid of. Alright, it’s time for a spontaneous trip out there. I know who’s doing it, and they are not going to be employed by me much longer.” Dean sighed. He pulled out his phone and sent a text to Charlie regarding the issue.

“Do you handle the accounting for all of your shops?” Cas asked.

“No, not really. I have an accountant but I like to go over the numbers to make sure there is no embezzlement or theft going on. Most of the time Jim, my accountant, he catches it, but this one has been sneaky lately. This here, what you caught? That’s a stupid, obvious move on their part. Sometimes the numbers are just off and I can’t figure out exactly why.”

“I’d be glad to help whenever you need it. I tend to have an eye for detail and can catch mathematical errors fairly quickly,” Cas offered.

Dean rubbed the back of the Omega’s neck. “I would appreciate that. I spend more time in here going over the finances than I do actually in the shops inspecting them, and I need to do that more.”

Cas smiled, happy that he was able to help his Alpha.

“How are you feeling?” Dean asked him.

“Much better. My, um, heat…it’s over.” Cas’ cheeks flushed red and Dean caught his scent. It was cleaner, purer than it had been in a while, but there was an underlying odor to it that Dean picked up on immediately. Cas was horny.

“Oh. Oh….” Dean’s eyes widened. “Were you…did you want to…” He rubbed nervously at the back of his own neck. 

Cas got to his feet and approached the Alpha, who was watching him very carefully. He stepped into the man’s personal space and tentatively slipped his hands under the tee shirt Dean was wearing, running his fingers over the smooth skin of his abdomen and making the muscles twitch. He leaned in close to press his lips to Dean’s neck before placing a soft nip there that made the Alpha yelp in surprise.

“Shit, Cas!” He breathed, bringing his hands up to grab the man’s waist. The scent of arousal coming off the Omega was getting stronger by the minute and it was driving him nuts.

“Dean…” Cas moaned when the Alpha turned him and pushed him up against the bookcase behind him. He pressed his body closer, gauging the Omega’s reaction to the feeling of his erection as it rubbed against the man’s thigh. When there was no change in Cas’ scent he moved his hips forward, grinding lightly against him. The last thing he wanted to do was scare his mate.

“If you’re busy I’ll just…” Cas made to step out from under where the Alpha had him pinned but strong hands gripped his hips firmly, holding him in place.

“Not. That. Busy.” Dean ground against him a little more firmly, which pulled a sound from Cas that was a cross between a whimper and a moan.

“Need you.” Cas gasped as one of Dean’s hands moved from his hip to rub his erection through the thin fabric of his sweatpants. It pleased Dean to see his mate wearing the clothing he had provided for him, but right now he just wanted to tear them off. He was desperate now for access to his mate’s bare skin.

“Not here. It’s not soundproofed in here, and Sam’s probably home. Come on.”

“No, talked to Sam. He went to the library,” Cas told him.

“Good, but I still want our first time to be on a bed, not with you bent over a desk.” Dean ground against him again, making the Omega whimper.

Dean took Cas by the hand and led him out of his office and up to the second floor. Sam’s bedroom door was open, the room empty. He had already left like Cas had said. Good. He pulled the Omega along faster as he headed for his own room. Once inside he shut the door and locked it. 

“You’re sure you want this?” Dean asked once he turned back to look at Cas.

“Yes. I’ll admit I’m nervous, but I’m ready.” Cas was moving closer, hands back under Dean’s shirt as he tried to pull it over his head. Dean lifted his arms to let him and a moment later the shirt was tossed on the floor.

“Oh God, I want you so bad, Cas.” Dean surged forward, his mouth finding Cas’, tongue already seeking and finding that of the smaller man. Cas groaned and Dean growled approvingly as he walked the man back towards the bed. 

“If I…go a little Alpha here, I apologize. I promise to be gentle though.”

Cas looked up with wide eyes. “What do you mean by that?”

“I might get bossy. Don’t be afraid to put me in my place though.” Dean was kissing his way down Cas’ neck and making the man moan again. 

“I...can handle…bossy…” The words came out in a series of gasps as Dean licked and nipped at his collarbone.

“Lie down,” Dean told him. Cas fell back on the mattress and scooted up to lay his head against the pillows. His eyes were wide as he watched the Alpha crawl up and settle over him. Never before had Dean looked more like the apex predator he was than in that moment. The hungry look in his eyes was triggering his own arousal and he could feel as slick began to drip down his leg to soak into the fabric of his boxers. As soon as the scent of it hit Dean his nostrils flared and he inhaled deeply. 

“Fuck Cas, I want you so bad…,” he growled as he tugged at Cas’ shirt.

“You’ve got me, Dean.” Cas’ voice was rougher than usual as he obliged, allowing the fabric to be pulled over his head and whipped across the room. 

Dean’s mouth began a slow but thorough exploration of his mate’s body, mapping out every dip, every curve, memorizing the taste of his skin, his scent, every sound escaping those perfect lips. Sweatpants and boxers were tossed aside leaving the Omega naked beneath him. He looked so much better now that Dean couldn’t count every rib and see the extreme edges of the man’s hip bones. The dark circles under his eyes were gone, and he had color to his cheeks that he hadn’t had when he had first arrived. Dean worshipped his body, loving how the man came completely apart under his touch. He nudged Cas’ legs open and as he watched the man’s expression closely he slowly circled a finger around the tight ring of muscles at the Omega’s hole. There was no sign of distress, and Cas wasn’t telling him to stop so he slowly pushed in. Cas moaned, his eyelids fluttering and his hips pressing down to draw the finger in deeper.

“This ok?” he murmured against the Omega’s ear. Cas moaned louder, nodding.

“Yes, oh God yes!” 

Dean smiled and kissed his mate. “Cas, I love you, baby, I want you to know that.” Blue eyes opened to stare up at him. The love he could see there was breathtaking.

“I love you too.” 

Dean added a second finger and slowly began to move them back and forth in a scissoring motion. Cas realized this was what Sam meant by “opening him up.” 

“Relax, sweetheart, I don’t want to hurt you.” 

Cas forced his body to relax, choosing to focus on the way Dean’s tongue was swirling around one nipple instead of how a third finger was being eased inside of his tight hole.

“So tight, baby, you’re so perfect,” Dean murmured against his skin. Cas relaxed further, purring now as Dean moved his fingers so that they brushed against his prostate.

“Ah! Oh God that feels good!” Cas cried. 

Dean smiled at his mate’s reaction. He had waited his entire life for this moment, and now that it was here he was in no rush. This was a moment he wanted to last forever.

When Cas was as open as he was going to get, Dean leaned over him, stilling the fingers he still had moving inside the other man.

“I want to make sure you’re ready for this. If you tense up, it’ll hurt, so I need you to stay relaxed. If you want me to stop, I will.”

Cas looked up into forest green eyes filled with love and concern, and he knew he wanted this. Dean was his mate. He brought his hands up to cup the Alpha’s face and draw him down into a kiss.

“I want this, Dean.” 

The smile that broke out on his face made Cas’ heart flutter.

“Come here then, sweetheart, we’re doing this right so it doesn’t hurt.” Dean withdrew his fingers, something Cas let out an annoyed huff about and sat back on his haunches. He pulled Cas into a sitting position.

“Baby, I need you to present.” 

Cas looked at him for a moment before his face flushed red. The idea of presenting to an Alpha was embarrassing, but this was Dean. He got up on all fours, turning his back to his mate. One warm hand slid across his lower back, pulling him back against the taller man, another settled on his hip. Then Dean was leaning over him, kissing his back as he moved into position.

“Cas, baby, relax.” 

So Cas did. He put his trust in Dean and spread his legs wider. A moment later he felt Dean’s hard cock pressing against his entrance. The Alpha was rubbing circles gently into Cas’ hips as he pressed in slowly, inch by inch. At first Cas wanted to freeze and lock up every muscle in his body, but Dean was taking his time just as he had promised he would. The pain didn’t last long though, and soon it was turned to pleasure as Dean slowly began to move.

“You…ok?” the Alpha asked, groaning with every thrust. Cas moaned and nodded, too overwhelmed for words in that moment. A slight shift of Dean’s hips and Cas was suddenly seeing stars. His prostate was getting hit on every thrust and he cried out as he finally found his voice.

“Oh…God…so good…”

“Come up with me.” Dean sat back on his haunches and pulled Cas up so that his back was pressed to the Alpha’s chest. Dean wrapped his arms around Cas’ chest and increased the power of his thrusts until he was slamming hard into him. The Omega cried out every time his prostate was hit.

“N-need you to f-face me baby. N-need to claim y-you,” Dean was gasping. Cas pulled off long enough to turn around before sinking back down and taking Dean’s entire cock in one go. He moaned and let his head fall forward onto Dean’s shoulder.

“Shit, you ok?” Dean asked worriedly.

“I’m fine, just, please…move,” Cas begged. Dean picked up where he left off, thrusting hard and fast, and Cas clung to him, a series of whimpers and moans falling from his mouth. He could feel Dean’s cock swelling along with his knot. For a split second he panicked as the knot began to catch on his rim, but it wasn’t hurting him, in fact, it felt good!

“Dean!” Cas cried out as the Alpha wrapped his hand around the Omega’s cock and began to stroke it, keeping time with the thrusts until Cas was barely able to stay sitting up.

When Cas came it was as if fireworks were going off throughout his entire body. Dean was still thrusting, though his hips were losing their rhythm. He held Cas tighter as he sucked at the tender skin where Cas’ shoulder met his neck.

“Baby…I’m close…”

“Come for me Dean, please!” Cas begged. One last thrust locked Dean inside his mate, and he cried out. He sank his teeth into Cas’ skin, and the Omega screamed as he was hit with a second even more intense orgasm. 

“Bite me, Cas!” Dean commanded. Cas didn’t hesitate before sinking his teeth into Dean’s shoulder.

“Oh fuck!” Dean cried. Another even more powerful orgasm slammed into him and his entire body shuddered violently. 

“Are you alright?” Cas asked as he tentatively licked at the bite he had made, cleaning the blood around it.

“Mmm. So good.” Dean murmured. He had already cleaned up Cas’ mark and was nuzzling against it. Each time he reached out with his tongue to lick at it Cas would groan and clench around him, causing another orgasm to ripple through him. It was the best sex he had ever had, but he was hoping Cas enjoyed it, too. He lifted the Omega and carefully laid them both down in the bed. 

“Did I hurt you?” Dean asked as he ran his fingers slowly up and down Cas’ back. The Omega smiled.

“No, you didn’t. I appreciate that.” 

Cas moved closer, burying his face against his Alpha’s chest, his eyelids growing heavy. He could feel the change in their bond. Where it had felt rather tentative before it now felt solid, impenetrable. He felt safer than he ever had in his entire life. As he drifted off he purred softly, the feeling of contentment blanketing him. Dean smiled and pressed a kiss to his mate’s forehead before closing his eyes. He needed a nap after that, but he hoped they could do it again later. For now though, sleep was calling his name. He could get back to the accounting later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You are quite welcome for that. I know you've been waiting since chapter one for that, lol. I told you Dean would be gentle. He's a good Alpha.
> 
> Leave me a comment, you know I love them!


	9. To Challenge a Claim

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam encounters an Alpha while at the library with a tie to Cas, but it's the Alpha that approaches him when he's leaving that he really has to watch out for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are your seatbelts in place, my friends? Those of you that have been with me a while, you know better by now...

Sam stayed at the library most of the afternoon. At first it was because he needed to get away from his brother and Cas, but now he was invested in finishing this history paper that was due in three days. He hadn’t even realized the sun was setting until he finally looked up as he popped his back. Dean would not be happy that he stayed away this long without checking in so he packed up his books. As he was checking his phone to see if he had any missed calls or texts from his brother he caught the scent of an Alpha nearby. Tensing, he turned to find a man standing next to his table looking at him. He wasn’t very intimidating; Sam had darn close to a foot on the guy, plus he was standing with a lollipop sticking out of his mouth.

“Can I help you?” he asked, annoyed that this man was just staring at him.

“Gabriel. And you are?” The Alpha thrust his hand out at Sam.

“Not interested.” Sam grabbed his bag and stood up. As he went to step around the man, Gabriel blocked him.

“I should explain why I was drawn to you. You smell familiar. I can smell someone on you that I think I know. Perhaps it’s your mate?” Gabriel asked.

Sam frowned. “I don’t have a mate anymore, so no, you’re not….” Then he realized who he smelled like and his eyes narrowed.

“So this person, how do you know them?” he asked.

“Well…you smell like my baby brother, though I haven’t seen him in damn close to thirty years.” Gabriel stepped closer, making no attempt to hide that he was sniffing at the Beta’s clothes.

“Excuse you,” Sam growled. Gabriel took a step back and grinned.

“You know my brother Cassie! If he’s not your mate, how is it that you smell like him?”

Gabriel was excited now and Sam wasn’t sure how to handle that.

“Uh, he’s mated to my brother Dean. They’re true mates,” Sam replied carefully.

Gabriel’s eyes widened and he smiled even wider. “That’s fantastic news! Do they have a house full of pups? Does he treat my brother well? How is he?”

Sam held up a hand. “One question at a time.”

Gabriel motioned towards the seats. “Please, join me?”

Sam considered just leaving but he was afraid the man would follow him. So far this Alpha was friendly, and he wanted to remain on his good side. He sat back down. The Alpha sat right next to him. He leaned in again, sniffing harder.

“Your brother, Dean you said his name is? He’s an Alpha, I can smell it on you. Tell me about my brother, is he happy? Healthy? Dean treats him well, doesn’t he?”

“Yes, Cas is treated very well. My brother is a very good Alpha, and Cas is very well cared for. He is very happy. My brother treats him like an equal and respects him,” Sam replied. Gabriel cocked an eyebrow, clearly surprised by that.

“Really?”

“Is that really so hard to believe? Not every Alpha is an asshole,” Sam replied dryly.

“I agree. I’m not one, despite my upbringing. My dad tried to make me one but I refused,” Gabriel told him. He leaned an elbow on the table and looked Sam over.

“Does Cassie have any pups?”

“No, they just found each other a little over a week ago. Pups will come later, I’m sure.” Sam sat back to get some space between himself and the Alpha.

“How recently did they mate?” Gabriel asked.

Sam scratched at his arm. “…Today?”

Gabriel’s jaw dropped. “Wait, you’re telling me they found each other…and didn’t mate immediately?”

“Cas was scared. He was a virgin. Dean is a gentleman above anything else and wasn’t going to force Cas into doing anything he wasn’t ready to do, so…they waited. But as of today Cas was ready. It’s why I came here. I didn’t want to be there around all of the hormones,” Sam explained.

“Wait, you live with them?” Gabriel tilted his head and Sam snorted. It reminded him very much of Cas.

“I do. My brother watches over me, too; he’s very protective.”

“Huh.” Gabriel straightened up and pulled the sucker from his mouth. He looked at it for a moment before amber eyes lifted to meet the Beta’s hazel ones.

“So…you’re not mated?”

Sam stiffened and sat up straighter. “I don’t need a mate.”

Gabriel shrugged, a coy smile playing on his lips. “Never said you did.”

Sam leveled him with a stern look. “What exactly do you want?”

“I want to see my brother. I actually miss him.” A concerned look came over the Alpha’s face.

“If your brother just found him, where was he all this time?”

Sam’s expression softened. If Gabriel really cared his next reaction would prove it.

“In the Omega District.”

Gabriel sat back so fast his chair nearly tipped backwards, and he gasped.

“No! Father said he didn’t end up there!”

“Well, he did. From what I understand an aunt or someone took him in for a while, long enough for him to attend college, but then she died and with no one to act as his guardian he was sent to The District. He was there for a very long time.”

Sam was surprised by how distressed Gabriel looked at hearing this news.

“How the hell did he manage to not get claimed living there? That place is a nightmare!”

“He’s smart, possibly smarter than most Betas. And he was determined to wait for his true mate. Now that he has him, he’s safe, well fed, and well loved,” Sam said.

“Can you call his Alpha? Or give him my number and ask Cassie to call me?” Gabriel was actually begging, something Sam had never witnessed an Alpha do.

“Uh…let me see if he answers.”

Sam took out his phone and dialed his brother’s number. It took several rings before his brother answered.

“Sammy?” Dean’s words were slurring as though he were just waking up.

“Yeah, you, uh…still in bed?” Sam squirmed in his seat and glanced at Gabriel who had a knowing smirk on his face.

“We were sleeping. Second nap today. Lots of exercise.” Sam could hear the smug smile in his brother’s voice.

“Yeah, that’s nice. Anyway, I’m at the library and I have an Alpha sitting here that says he’s Cas’ brother. He’s asking to see Cas.” 

“What?” Suddenly all sleep dropped from Dean’s voice, and Sam could hear him getting out of the bed.

“You heard me. His name is Gabriel.”

“So, one of the bastards that let Cas’ asshole father toss him out in the middle of a heat?” Dean asked angrily.

“He says he had nothing to do with that decision and couldn’t stop their father.” Sam glanced at Gabriel again, and the Alpha nodded. He was leaning forward again, the lollipop back in his mouth.

“I need to talk to Cas first, and he’s still asleep. Get his number and IF Cas wants to talk to him, we’ll call him. I’m not making Cas do it if he doesn’t want to.”

Sam sighed. “Ok, I’ll tell him.”

“Alright. And be careful coming home, make sure he doesn’t follow you,” Dean said.

“Yeah, I know. I’ll see you later.”

“Hurry home.”

“I will.”

Sam tucked the phone in his pocket again. “Cas is asleep and Dean said it’s Cas’ decision, and he wasn’t waking him up to make him decide right now, so I’m to get your number and give it to Cas. If he wants to call you, he will.”

Gabriel was clearly annoyed by this, but he knew there was no point in arguing. Instead he rattled his number off to Sam who texted it to Dean. When he was done he stood up.

“I have to go. I hope you have a nice evening, Gabriel.” 

“You too, Samsquatch.” 

Sam turned back to look at the smirking Alpha with a puzzled expression, but he was not in the mood to try and interpret what Gabriel meant by that. Instead he continued on to the parking lot. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sam’s truck was something he loved. Dean preferred his antique Impala but not Sam; he drove a brand new Escalade, a gift from his brother for his last birthday, and he was just about to pull the keys from his pocket when something hard smashed against the side of his head. He stumbled and fell to his knees.

“Tsk, tsk, Beta, you should have listened to me yesterday when I told you to give me my Omega. I guess I’m going to have to send a message to that bastard Alpha that took what belongs to me.” 

Sam heard the nasally voice but before he could turn to see the man belonging to it, he was kicked in the face and sent sprawling.

“I want my Omega. Tell Dean Winchester he had better return him to me untouched or he’ll be sorry.” Sam didn’t have to see the man to know it was Alistair looming over him, threatening him.

“It’s…too late…asshole. He’s claimed…already.” Sam spat out a mouthful of blood just as the Alpha growled and kicked him hard in the side. He felt his ribs snap, and he cried out from the pain. As he turned onto his stomach and tried to crawl away a boot came crashing down first on his left hand, and then his right. He collapsed on the ground, tears streaming down his face.

“Hey, asshole! Why are you picking on a Beta?”

Sam turned his head to see Gabriel’s form now standing just a few feet away, glaring at Alistair.”

“This doesn’t concern you,” Alistair snarled.

“Oh, I beg to differ. That’s my friend you’re kicking the shit out of, and you’re assaulting him over MY brother, so yes, it absolutely IS my business.” Gabriel’s voice took on a cold tone and his expression clearly showed that he was challenging Alistair. 

“If he’s your brother, then you’re the one I need to challenge.” Alistair turned on Gabriel but the smaller man was ready for him.

“That’s where you’re wrong. I don’t have guardianship of my brother. Never did. Dean does, and they’re mated, so you have no right to challenge anyway,” Gabriel said as he ducked a punch aimed for his face.

“Lies!” Alistair snarled. 

Gabriel dodged strike after strike until he had put himself between Sam and Alistair. Sam had managed to get to his knees, and after finding his phone he sent a text to Dean.

Sam: Com qick, alisrt here! Bbbbeat me badk Gabrrrrl stepped him but ned yo now!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean was just getting out of the shower when he got the text from Sam but his phone was on the nightstand. Cas screaming his name was what got him moving.

“Dean! Oh God, DEAN!”

“What?!” Dean flew into the room to find Cas scrambling off the bed and thrusting his phone at him.

“Sam was attacked!”

Dean snatched the phone and read the message.

“Oh fuck, that bastard!” he roared. He ran to his dresser and tore out the first items of clothing he could find, shoving them and his boots on. When he turned back to Cas he saw the man standing at the foot of the bed clutching the bed sheet as he watched Dean in terror.

“Baby, I’m going to leave you here with the alarm on while I go get Sam, ok? You’ll be safe,” Dean told him.

“N-no! Please, don’t leave me here!” Cas dropped the sheet and grabbed the front of Dean’s shirt. “Please!”

Dean was torn. His brother needed him but he needed to keep his Omega safe too. He peeled Cas’ fingers off his shirt and held the man’s hands tightly between his own.

“Run and grab clothes. We’re leaving now.”

Cas bolted from the room, and by the time Dean had made it down to the first floor Cas was running after him. He was wearing just a pair of sweatpants, a tee shirt and his shoes in hand. They went out to the garage and Cas expected him to head to the Impala but instead he walked over to a Hummer.

“Get in,” Dean told him. Cas jumped into the passenger seat just as Dean was putting the vehicle in reverse and backing out of the garage. He hurried to put his shirt and shoes on as Dean raced towards the library. 

“Here, see if there are any more texts,” Dean handed his phone to Cas.

“Police and ambulance are there now,” Cas told him. Dean pressed harder on the gas.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The library was only a few blocks from the house, and it didn’t take long to get there. As Dean pulled into the parking lot he remembered something Sam had said on the phone earlier.

“Babe? Sam called me earlier, while you were sleeping and said…your brother showed up at the library. I think he’s the one that fought Alistair off of Sam.”

Cas’ head whipped around to look at him. “Which brother?”

“How many do you even have? I think his name’s Gabriel?” Dean pulled into a spot and Cas stayed very close as they wove through the growing crowd. Dean reached back to grab his hand as they approached a line of police cars. Dean recognized Jody Mills.

“Jody! Jody!” he yelled. She turned, seeking him out in the crowd. When she spotted him she motioned to her men to let him through. Dean pulled Cas along with him as he headed for where there were two ambulances parked. They rounded the back of the closest one and Dean nearly sobbed with relief when he saw Sam sitting there. The Beta was in bad shape, slumped forward, bandages covering most of his exposed flesh, bruises and cuts on his face and hands, but he smiled at the sight of his brother and Cas.

“Shit, Sam!” Dean let go of Cas to examine the injuries to his brother more closely, but Sam just smacked his hand away.

“Stop it, I’m fine.” 

“What the hell happened?” Dean demanded.

“Alistair must have followed me. Was demanding that I tell you to hand Cas over. I refused and, well…you see the result,” Sam sighed.

“I couldn’t make much sense of your text. How exactly did you get Alistair to stop?” Dean was looking at his brother’s hands. Both had fingers taped which told him he had multiple broken digits. His rage built up as he calculated the damage that had been inflicted on his brother. Cas sensed his distress and put a hand on the back of his neck, rubbing gently at the muscles there that were tensed.

“Cas’ brother came out and saw Alistair beating me, and he tore into him,” Sam replied. Cas looked around but he wasn’t sure that after all these years he would remember what his brother looked like. He was sure time had changed them both.

“Are you very badly injured?” he asked Sam. Sam gave a small shrug of his shoulders, grimacing at the pain that shot through his chest at the gesture.

“They think I have a couple of cracked ribs, but aside from some bruises, I’ll be fine.”

Cas touched the Beta’s knee. “Thank you. You didn’t have to protect me like that.”

Sam frowned. “Yes, I did, you’re family.”

Cas wanted to cry seeing his mate’s brother like this. It was clear the Beta was trying to be stoic, so Dean wouldn’t worry as much, but with his sensitive Omega nose he could smell that the man was in pain. 

“Hey there Samm-o.” Gabe came walking up, freezing when he caught his own brother’s scent. He turned, his amber eyes locking on Cas’ blue ones. “Cassie?” His voice waivered as his eyes began filling with tears. Cas leaned instinctively against Dean, who put his arm around his mate protectively.

“Hello, Gabriel,” Cas replied softly. 

“You…you look good little brother.” Gabe smiled and it was something genuine and honest, nothing like the flirty smirks he was giving inside the library. 

“As do you.” Cas pressed in closer to Dean. Gabe was still an Alpha and unknown Alphas, even ones he was related to, made him wary. Dean reached past Cas, offering Gabe his hand.

“Thank you for stepping in when you did. Alistair was intent on killing him to send me a message. I greatly appreciate you helping my brother like this,” he said. Gabe smiled a bit wider and looked up at Dean. He extended his own hand, shaking Dean’s firmly.

“There was no way I could stand by and allow him to continue getting attacked. Even if I didn’t know him, I’m not that kind of person. I just hope you’ll be alright,” Gabe directed his last words at Sam, who offered him a small smile.

“If it is alright though I would like permission to speak with my brother at some point in the near future,” Gabe said, looking up at Dean again. Dean looked at Cas and gave him a small squeeze.

“Cas is his own person. It’s up to him. I’m his mate, not his keeper.”

Cas smiled warmly at his mate, thankful yet again that this man was his true mate. When he looked again at Gabe his expression turned contemplative.

“Why did you leave me to The District?” he asked, after several uncomfortable minutes where Gabe squirmed under his icy stare.

“I didn’t, I swear. You know I left before you presented. Dad was so sure all his boys would be Alphas, I didn’t think I had to worry about you. I followed after Kali like a lovesick fool. Huge mistake. I was gone for about twelve years before she up and left me. Took our kid one day while I was at work and split. So I went home. Michael’s the one that told me you presented as an Omega. I was worried, asked dad about you but he said you were fine, that you had cut yourself off from the family and were living somewhere and doing well. I…believed him. I didn’t realize that I shouldn’t have.” Gabe’s eyes dropped to the blacktop under his feet as shame flooded through him. The change in his scent was almost acrid, and Cas knew his brother wasn’t lying.

“Kali, she was older than you, wasn’t she?” Cas tentatively took a small step away from Dean and towards his brother.

“Yes. Like I said, I was young and stupid. She was twenty, I was sixteen. Never let me claim her. I should have known she didn’t intend to stay,” Gabe sighed, his misery apparent.

“What are you doing now? Where do you live?” Cas asked.

“I was gone for a few years. I own a chain of bakeries, and I went to Seattle to try and start over but…mom died, so I came home.” Gabe looked up at his brother. The shock was apparent on Cas’ face. He staggered back a step, and Dean immediately enveloped him in his arms.

“Breathe, babe,” Dean murmured against his ear. Cas took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

“She died? When?” 

“Two years ago? She was sick for a while though. Cancer,” Gabe replied. Cas wasn’t exactly sure how he felt in that moment. His mother had been an Omega, under his father’s strict rule, not allowed to think for herself, but she had, unfortunately shared many of his father’s views on Omega rights, and when his father had kicked him out, his mother had stood at the man’s side, arms crossed, a look of disgust on her face. He decided he didn’t feel bad about it. It was no loss to him in the end.

“She sided with dad when he kicked me out. She didn’t even stand up for me.” He turned and wrapped his arms around Dean, needing the extra security. This was an information overload, and it was overwhelming him. Gabe’s face fell hearing his brother say that.

“Yeah, well…fuck them. I can’t consider anyone that would throw their own flesh and blood out family, you know? Dad never liked that I swung both ways anyway. Only wanted me to settle down with a mild-mannered female omega. Except I go after whatever I find attractive. And I like a challenge.” He glanced so quickly in Sam’s direction that both Cas and Dean missed it, but Sam didn’t. The Beta pursed his lips and frowned.

“Ok, we’re heading to the hospital now. Are you planning to ride with him?” The paramedic was a Beta, short with a long, blonde ponytail. She stood next to the doors with her hands on her hips looking at each of the men standing there.

“I can ride with him,” Cas said softly.

“You sure? I’ll be right behind in the Hummer,” Dean told him. Cas gave a small smile and nodded. 

“What about Sam’s truck? The library won’t let you leave it here.” Gabe pointed out. “He’ll get towed.” He pointed at a sign mounted to the light pole a few feet away. It basically said as much.

“Ugh…” Dean scratched at his neck, his nose scrunching as he thought.

“Why don’t I follow you, Dean, to the hospital and drop it off?” Gabe offered.

“What about your car?” Dean asked.

“I walked here, I happen to live right around the corner. Or I can park his truck in my driveway until he’s out of the hospital.”

Dean looked at his brother who shrugged and then winced. He was pretty sure Sam had a broken collarbone, too.

“Yeah, park it in your driveway. I’ll try to pick it up tomorrow, or Dean can if I can’t drive,” Sam said.

“Keys?” Gabe held a hand out and Sam frowned.

“I can’t get them out of my pocket.”

“I’ll get them.” Dean reached into his brother’s pocket, fishing the keys out and handing them over. “Thanks again, Gabe, for everything,” he said. Gabe accepted the keys and nodded.

“Of course.” He looked at his own brother again. “Do you have a phone? Can I call you?”

“I do, it’s in the car.” Cas motioned back towards the Hummer.

“What’s your number?” Gabe asked.

“Uh…” Cas frowned and looked to Dean, who chuckled and rattled it off. Gabe entered it into his own phone. Sam was being helped up and was moving to lay down on the gurney where another paramedic was securing him to it. Cas climbed up to sit down next to him.

“Sam gave me your number earlier. I’ll text you when we get out and someone will be by to pick up the truck tomorrow.” Dean said as he started for the Hummer. Gabe followed.

“Yeah, just let me know with a text when you’re coming, and I’ll meet you with the keys.” 

“Good night, Gabe,” Dean said as he climbed up into the Hummer.

“Hey, let me know what the doctors say, ok? I wish I’d come out sooner. I’m sorry that asshole kicked him around like he did; I had no idea it was even happening until I heard my brother’s name and came to investigate. I feel bad that I didn’t walk out with him,” Gabe said. Dean nodded.

“I’ll text you later then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SAM WILL BE OK, just wanted to point that out. He has more injuries than it sounds like at first, but in this world, people heal quickly, so he'll be better sooner rather than later. I hope you all liked this chapter. Leave me a comment. Next chapter will be up Wednesday.


	10. Calm Before the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After hours spent at the hospital to ensure that Sam was going to be ok, they make the drive back home, but something isn't right.
> 
> Dean knows there's someone in the house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So....I hope you like this chapter. Enjoy!

Dean followed closely behind the ambulance, not letting it out of his sight. Alistair still had not been caught, and he had no idea where the bastard was lurking. He could pop up anywhere, and there was no way he was letting the freak anywhere near his mate or his brother ever again. When he reached the hospital, he watched the ambulance pull into one of the bays and he drove past, finding a parking spot near the doors and grabbing Cas’ phone, he hurried inside.

He made his way to the information desk where a stern looking nurse in a baby pink sweater was sitting. 

“My brother was just brought in, that ambulance there. Sam Winchester?” he told her.

“Well, he’s not admitted yet, so you’ll have to wait.” She sounded bored as she spoke.

“Well no shit, he just came in. I just want to be back there with him,” he snapped. She opened her mouth to say something he was sure was going to send him over the edge and make him snap when he heard Cas calling his name. He looked up to see his mate motioning to him. With one last glare in the nurse’s direction he hurried to his Omega’s side.

“They took Sam back here. He’s in bay seventeen. I told the doctor you were just parking,” Cas explained as he led Dean around the corner. Straight ahead was bay seventeen, and they could see people working on Sam.

“Hey Sammy,” Dean said as he walked in. Sam looked up in relief when he spotted his brother.

“They’re taking me for some x-rays. Maybe an ultrasound of my abdomen since I have a couple of really bad bruises there. They want to make sure there are no hemorrhages,” Sam explained as a nurse helped him out of his shirt. He was especially glad he’d chosen a button up over a tee shirt today. Dean’s expression darkened when he saw the nearly black bruises covering his brother’s lower abdomen.

“I’ll be ok, Dean,” Sam said softly. He looked at Cas with a pleading expression and the Omega nodded before moving to stand in front of Dean, making sure his own scent remained calm.

“Dean, darling, Sam will be ok, and they will catch Alistair. Your friend Jody is a good police officer. She will find him.” He leaned into Dean, purring softly, and Dean relaxed a bit, wrapping his arms around his mate.

“I know, you’re right. But if get a hold of him before they can catch him…” He growled and Cas whimpered, a sign that he was scaring his mate. “I’m sorry, sweetheart.” He sat down, pulling Cas down into the seat next to him. They watched the nurses and doctor as they checked over all of Sam’s injuries. Jody had sent men to talk again with Sam, and he related his story again, except this time Dean and Cas were there to hear the entire thing. Sam was sent up for x-rays, an ultrasound, and after learning he’d been kicked in the head, a CAT scan as well. 

It was well after two before they deemed Sam well enough to go home. This time Cas happily slipped into the backseat so that Sam could sit comfortably in the front. It was a twenty minute ride back to the house, and Sam dozed off several times thanks to the pain medication they had given him. As soon as Dean pulled into the driveway he knew something was wrong.

“Cas, do me a favor, call Jody. Now.” He handed his phone to his mate who sat forward to take it.

“What’s wrong?” Cas asked.

“Someone’s in the house.” 

Cas whimpered and quickly found Jody’s number in the phone. He hit dial and put it to his ear. 

“What’s happening?” Sam asked, words slurring as he opened his eyes.

“Stay here. Do not get out,” Dean ordered. Sam’s eyes widened before he looked up at the house. Cas was talking quickly as he watched Dean climb out of the Hummer and start towards the garage. Cas hung up and leaned forward.

“Why is he going to the garage?” he asked.

“Dean has guns, and they’re strategically placed all over the house, but there’s one in the garage. A Mossberg. Whoever’s in the house, they’re not walking out of there,” Sam replied. Cas whimpered, and Sam turned as much in his seat as he could.

“Come sit next to me. Climb over the seat. Dean won’t mind.” 

Cas climbed into the driver’s seat, and Sam opened his arms so the Omega could scoot closer. It wasn’t his mate, but the scent of distress pouring off Cas was starting to affect him and he knew Dean wouldn’t want his mate worrying about him.

“It’s ok, I don’t bite. Just…don’t bump me,” Sam said softly. Cas quickly slid across the seat, leaning into Sam and curling up as the Beta draped an arm over his shoulder. “Dean will take care of this,” Sam said, his eyes going back to the door his brother had just gone through. A tap on the passenger window a few minutes later made Cas cry out and Sam jumped, both from the tap and the sound Cas made. They both turned to see Jody and another officer standing outside the Hummer. Sam rolled his window down.

“Dean inside?” Jody asked. Sam nodded.

“Be careful, Dean’s armed,” he warned. 

“Stay here. Keep the car locked and the windows up until one of us comes back out,” she told them. Sam nodded and rolled the window back up. Cas scooted closer and Sam could feel how bad the man was shaking. 

“Shh, it’s ok. Dean has training; he took self-defense courses and has extensive gun-handling experience. No one is getting the upper hand on him. He’ll do anything to protect us.” Sam spoke softly, his eyes locked on the garage door where Jody and the other officer had just disappeared inside of. Two more cops arrived, and Sam pointed towards the house. 

“What’s taking so long?” Cas whispered. 

“I wish I knew. It is a big house, someone could be hiding anywhere.” Sam replied. 

The sound of gunshots filled the night, and Cas cried out. Sam’s hold on the Omega tightened as his heart leapt into his throat. They clung to one another as they waited for someone - anyone - to come out of the house. When Dean came out ten minutes later Cas scrambled across the seat, throwing the driver’s side door open just as the Alpha reached the Hummer. Dean caught him as the Omega threw himself in his arms.

“Hey, honey…it’s ok.” He squeezed his mate tight and ran his fingers through the Omega’s hair as he tried to soothe him.

“What happened? Who was inside?” Sam asked.

“The one they arrested last week, the one with the weird name? Alistair’s brother. We searched the entire house, and one of Jody’s men found him in my office. When he opened the door the bastard lunged into the hall and tried to claw the officer’s eyes out. Dude was in full, psycho Alpha mode, teeth bared, claws extended, the whole nine yards. Kid got two shots in before that nutcase tore into him. Jody’s calling an ambulance now.”

“What was he doing in the house? How did he get in?” Cas was still trembling, and Dean pushed him back just enough so he could sit down. Cas was immediately in his lap, wrapping himself around his Alpha.

“In the haste to get to Sam I forgot to turn on the alarm. I’m sorry guys.” Dean sighed heavily and kissed the top of Cas’ head before turning his head towards his brother and laying his cheek on top of the Omega’s unruly hair.

“You guys didn’t see anything out here, did you?” he asked.

“I didn’t, and Cas was too scared to look around,” Sam replied. “Not that I was doing much better. I just kept staring at the garage door.”

“We’re going to have to find somewhere else to stay tonight. Jody’s locking the place up; it’s now a crime scene. They need to find out how many people were in there and document all the damage,” Dean sighed.

“Damage?” Cas lifted his head and looked up at him. “What did Azazel do?”

“Jody’s not sure he was in there alone. Our room, it’s trashed. The bed was clawed so bad there’s no way to salvage it. And the spare room where you stayed…it’s even worse. I have to hire people to come in and clean it all up,” Dean replied. Cas’ eyes widened and as he blinked Dean saw the tears forming in them.

“Hey, baby, it’s not your fault, do not blame yourself. Some Alphas…they’re off their rocker. Clearly Alistair is, and if he doubted we mated today, he’s not doubting it now. The bedroom still reeks of what we did in there earlier. I didn’t open the windows so there was nowhere for the smell to dissipate to. If he’s the one that went in there, it would have hit him like a Mack truck. No denying it after that. So if he’s going to be stupid enough to continue to challenge me, I have the legal right now to kill him. He has entered my territory, threatened what belongs to me, and put my family in danger. It’s against the law to threaten a mated pair. Everyone knows that. Even Alistair has to know this.” Dean brought his hands up to cup his mate’s face. “Do not ever blame yourself for that man’s insanity. He clearly has not just a few screws loose but the entire machine is missing every nut, bolt, screw, and maybe even a few panels. I will protect you and keep you safe, that is my promise to you.” 

Cas nodded. “Ok.”

“What happened to Azazel?” Sam asked. Dean frowned and shook his head. 

“Shit,” Sam muttered.

“Where will we stay? Will we be safe?” Cas asked worriedly. That was something Dean wasn’t sure about. They could stay at a hotel. He didn’t want to bring this kind of trouble to Ellen’s door, so going there was out of the question. Another Beta wouldn’t be much help against a psychotic Alpha with a God complex.

“Call Gabe. Maybe he knows a safe place,” Cas urged.

“You sure?” Dean asked him. He missed the grimace on Sam’s face at the suggestion. Cas nodded eagerly.

“He might have a room or know of a safe place.”

Dean accepted his phone back and dialed the number Sam had sent him earlier. It didn’t take long for the other Alpha to answer.

“Hello?” Gabe asked, clearly cautious answering an unknown number in the middle of the night. He sounded sleepy.

“Gabe? It’s Dean Winchester.” 

“Hey Dean-o, everything ok?” Gabe yawned.

“Sorry to wake you, but I sort of was hoping you could help us? The guy that attacked my brother tonight? He broke into my house with his brother while we were at the hospital, tore my house up, and one of the cops shot the brother. So my place looks like an episode of CSI right now. Do you know of a safe place where I can take my family tonight? Someplace that hopefully Alistair won’t find us. I wouldn’t ask but I’m wary of staying in a hotel,” Dean explained.

“Shit, you guys are ok though, right?” Gabe sobered up quickly, coming fully awake as he listened to Dean talk.

“Yeah, we’re fine,” Dean replied. Cas leaned his head against the Alpha’s shoulder as he listened to his mate talk to his brother, the events of the day catching up with him. He was exhausted.

“Come over here, I have two spare bedrooms and no one using them. I have an alarm system too. Tomorrow, if you want to go stay somewhere else that’s fine, but I know Sam needs rest and I’m sure my brother’s scared,” Gabe said.

“You’re sure? It’s not too much of a hassle?” Dean glanced over at Sam who was leaning his head against the car window, his eyes closed as the pain meds took over again.

“No, no hassle. We’re family anyway. Well, the only family I want anything to do with now. I’ll text you my address. I’ll put my car in the drive so you can park that behemoth of yours in my garage along with Sam’s truck, that way if that creep is cruising around he won’t see them,” Gabe told him.

“Thanks man, I really appreciate this,” Dean said.

“No problem. I’ll text you right now. See you in a few.”

“Yep. Bye.” Dean hung up and nudged Cas lightly. The Omega looked up with sleepy eyes.

“He found a place?”

“We’re going to go stay with him tonight. He has an alarm system, and we’re parking the Hummer and Sam’s truck in the garage.” Dean moved Cas onto the seat next to him and started the Hummer. He’d already told Jody to call him later if she wanted him to come down to the station but that he was getting his family out of there. 

The drive to Gabe’s wasn’t long, and he found the house easily. It was a nice ranch style with an attached garage. Gabe was waiting in front of the open garage doors with his robe wrapped tightly around himself. He motioned for Dean to pull in, so he did.

“Hey,” he greeted them as Dean got out of the Hummer. Cas slid out after him. Sam was still snoring, not yet aware that they had driven over here. Dean went around and opened the passenger door, catching a startled Beta before he could fall out and hurt himself.

“Where are we?” Sam asked thickly as he climbed out of the Hummer.

“Gabe’s. We’re staying here tonight. He has an alarm system, and we’ll be safe for tonight.” Dean put an arm around his brother’s waist and walked him around the front of the Hummer to a door where Gabe and Cas were both waiting. Gabe hit a button and the garage door slid closed.

“Come on, I’ll show you to your rooms.” Gabe led them into a modest sized kitchen and then into the living room. It was all one level and they followed him down the hall, stopping when Gabe did in front of one room. He reached in and flipped on the lights.

“If I’d had more warning I’d have changed the bedding, it’s been awhile since anyone has stayed over, but if you guys are here for a few days I promise I’ll change it tomorrow. Sam can take this room; it’s the closest to the bathroom.” 

Dean led his brother over to the bed and once Sam was sitting, he crouched down and pulled the man’s shoes off. Cas stepped in to pull the covers back and together they tucked Sam in. The Beta was still fairly heavily sedated, and he sighed as he snuggled back against the pillows and his eyes fluttered shut again.

“Thank you guys.” His words slurred as he was already drifting off again.

Dean and Cas returned to the hall, and Dean closed the bedroom door. Gabe motioned for them to follow him to the next room. He repeated the process of reaching in and turning on the lights.

“Here you guys go. I’m going to go and set the alarm. If you need anything I’m directly across the hall. I’ll stay home tomorrow. You guys are welcome to stay as long as you need.” Gabe stifled a yawn as he looked at his brother and Dean.

“Thank you, Gabe. Come on babe, let’s get some sleep.” Dean took Cas’ hand and pulled him gently into the room. Gabe nodded and turned to leave them. 

“We’ll be safe here, right?” Cas asked as he kicked off his shoes. 

“Yes, baby, we’ll be fine. He set the alarm, and I made sure we weren’t followed. Come here.” Dean had already kicked off his boots and shrugged out of his jeans. He was sliding under the covers and once he was settled back against the pillows he held out his arms for Cas to join him. Cas looked back at the door. It had a lock.

“Would it be ok if I locked the door?”

“If it will make you feel safer, go ahead, but no one is going to touch you,” Dean told him. Cas locked the door and hurried to the bed. He started to pull the covers back and get under them when Dean stopped him.

“You sure you want to sleep in your sweats? The room’s a bit warm.” 

Cas blushed and looked down at the pants he was still wearing. “I sort of rushed earlier and…these are all I’m wearing.”

 

“Oh.” Dean chuckled softly and held the blankets up until Cas was under them and snuggled up against his side.

“Is this ok?” Cas asked once he was tucked in close. Dean put an arm around him, pulling him even closer.

“Yeah, I like sleeping with you in my arms,” Dean purred as he closed his eyes. Cas draped an arm over his mate’s chest and closed his own eyes. Even with the chaos going on around them he felt safe in Dean’s arms, as though nothing in the world could ever get at him again. With that calming thought in his head he drifted off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I didn't get this up sooner, today was my "baby's" sweet 16. It was a busy day around here. But it's up now and I do hope you all liked it. Next chapter will be up Sunday!


	11. The Road to Recovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The night at Gabe's passes by uneventfully. Sam is on his way to recovery, and much to his chagrin, he has a doting Alpha that wants to wait on him hand and foot.
> 
> And it's _not_ Dean.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoy the chapter!

Cas’ alarm for work went off in the morning, waking them both.

“What’s that?” Dean pushed himself up on his elbows and looked around blearily. For a moment he’d forgotten where he was.

“I have work.” Cas groaned. “My bag’s back at the house.”

“I’ll call Jody, see if she finds it. Do you absolutely need it first thing this morning?” Dean asked. Cas shrugged.

“I guess not, but I can’t go to work dressed like this either.”

“Why don’t you call in sick today, tell your boss we had a break in and our house is a crime scene. That should get you a ‘get out of work free card’ for the day.” Dean stretched and groaned.

Normally Cas would disagree and want to go in but with Alistair still running around out there he was too nervous. He grabbed his phone and placed a quick call in to the school, explaining what had happened. The principal was an understanding man and told him to take a couple of days off. Cas thanked him and hung up. Setting his phone back on the nightstand he collapsed face-first back into the fluffy pillows.

“You good?” Dean asked. Cas nodded.

“Good.” Dean curled himself around his mate, burying his nose in the man’s neck as he drifted off again. An hour later there was a knock at the bedroom door. Dean got up and shuffled over to answer it. He opened the door to find Sam standing there looking absolutely miserable.

“Dean, I need you to go fill my prescription, please. I didn’t sleep half the night. Once the meds wore off I was in too much pain to sleep. I’m hitting about a 10 now though, and I need something to ease it.” Sam looked miserable with dark circles under his eyes, and pale, clammy skin.

“Yeah, ok. Give it to me.” He accepted the piece of paper just as Gabe was coming out of his room.

“You don’t look so good there, Sam.” He sniffed the air and frowned. “Geez, how bad’s the pain?” 

“Bad,” Sam answered honestly.

“I’m going to go get his script. Just need to put on my pants,” Dean started to turn back into his room when Gabe snatched the prescription out of his hand.

“You stay here with your family; I’ll go fill it. I’m sure that if this creep is lurking about he’s looking for you or Sam, or even Cas. You’ll stick out like a sore thumb. I’ll go get it. He might recognize me, or he might not. Either way, he won’t be able to follow me. I’m too slick for that.” He looked up at Sam, his expression softening.

“I’ll be quick, I promise.”

“Thank you,” Sam told him before turning and heading back to his room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean called Charlie to fill her in before calling Jody. For that call he went to sit in the living room. Cas was still asleep, and he didn’t want to worry him further.

“Dean, I’m so glad you called early. How is your mate? And how is Sam?” she asked. Her tone was motherly, and it always made him smile to hear her like that. 

“Sam’s in pain this morning. We’re staying with Cas’ brother Gabriel, the one that beat Alistair off of Sam last night, and he went to get Sam’s pain meds. He should be back soon and then Sam should be feeling a bit better. Cas…he had a rough night, but he’s doing ok. I asked him to stay home today. He didn’t have his bag for work or a change of clothes, and I wasn’t sure when you’d let us back in the house.” 

“Yeah, forensics is still going over everything. I’m sorry this even happened,” she said.

“Yeah, well, I wish I’d have thought to turn the alarm on in my haste to get to Sam. I saw how bad those bastards trashed my house. It’ll be a miracle if I can get my mate to ever step foot inside it again. If I can’t make him feel safe, there’s no point.” He sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face.

“In the light of day, it’s worse than we thought last night. I did open the windows to air the place out once I got the ok to go ahead and do so, but you’re going to need new beds and a thorough cleaning. There’s urine and scent marks all over the place,” she told him.

“Goddamn it,” he growled. “I’ll see about renting a place until I can get the house cleaned up, and get some added security measures in place until that asshole is caught. Please tell me you have some leads,” he pleaded.

“No one saw him or Azazel go into the house last night but a lady across the street said she saw a woman come out of the house, dark hair, but they couldn’t make out her features. She was seen exiting the house around eleven. That would have been while you were still at the hospital.”

“A woman? I’ll have to ask Cas if he knows who that might be.” He wondered what woman could have been with them. There hadn’t been any smells other than Azazel or Alistair that he had noticed last night.

“Well, you worry about your brother and your mate. I’ll continue to hunt for this moron. If I find him or get any info I’ll call you.” 

“Thanks, Jody.”

“You’re welcome, sweetie, take it easy.”

The call ended, and he let out a frustrated groan.

“Dean?” 

He whipped his head around to find Cas standing in the living room doorway looking small and worried.

“Hey, gorgeous, come here.” Dean held out his arms and Cas crossed the room, sinking into the seat next to his mate and letting Dean pull him close. He leaned against the Alpha’s chest. This was something he had always wanted but never felt he could have, and now he had this beautiful mate that wanted him, and wanted to comfort him. Despite his years of independence he needed this, the sense of security, of love. 

“Is everything ok?” he asked.

“You want honesty, right?” Dean countered. Cas lifted his head to look him in the eye.

“I abhor liars.” 

“I know, so do I. So, the house, it’s trashed. They tore it apart. I just got off the phone with Jody, and she says it looks worse this morning than it did last night, though I think a lot of that has to do with forensics combing over the place. So until they’re done, I’m going to see about renting a place for us. Once they’re done in the house I intend to have a full gutting and cleansing done, and then I’m putting in a few more security measures. Sam wants us to get a dog. I’m thinking that’s a really good idea. Retired police dogs with training. But I’m putting in more cameras, some heat sensors, and a few other measures. I love that house and I don’t want to leave it unless we absolutely have to, but I need for you and Sam both to feel safe there.” Dean rubbed his mate’s arm gently as he spoke, and he took it as a good sign that he wasn’t smelling any distress in his mate’s scent.

“I like dogs. As long as they do their job but are good around us, I don’t mind having one, or more if you feel that would be best. I like the idea of added cameras and sensors. And…could you maybe teach me how to shoot a gun?” Cas asked. Not what Dean was expecting to hear.

“Oh, sure. We can work on that on the weekends. For now though we need to go shopping for clothes, and a new messenger bag for you, but I’m loath to do it here in the city. I’m going to call a friend and as much as I despise flying, we’re going to head up to Chicago to go shopping. That way I can pop in on the shops I have there while we’re in that area. I have to see if Sam feels up to traveling or if he just wants to stay here,” Dean said. Cas gave a wry little smile before glancing back towards the hall.

“I think Gabriel fancies courting your brother,” he said softly. Dean snorted.

“Yeah, I got that too, but I’m letting Sam deal with that. Gabe doesn’t know what he’s in for,” Dean snickered. He didn’t see Gabe as a threat to his brother. Sam was strong enough and stubborn enough to stave off the advances of an interested Alpha like Gabe if he had to. If he needed help, he’d ask. Dean doubted his brother would ask for it though.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They were still sitting on the couch when Gabe walked in the front door. He immediately reset the alarm.

“Hey guys, Sam still in bed?” he asked.

“Yeah, he’s miserable,” Dean replied.

“Well, this medicine has to be taken with food, so why don’t I whip up something for all of us?” Gabe handed the bag to Dean before heading to the kitchen.

“I’ll go and help him., Cas said, getting up. 

“But you don’t cook, babe,” Dean teased. Cas gave a small smile and ducked his head shyly.

“True, but I would like the opportunity to speak with my brother about some family issues.” Dean felt like an ass for teasing after that.

“Of course. I’m going to go make a few more phone calls and check on Sam.” He got up and headed to his brother’s room while Cas went to the kitchen. When he walked in he found Sam sitting up with a laptop perched on his legs. He was slowly typing with the fingers that weren’t bandaged.

“Uh…where did you get that?” Dean asked.

“Gabe had my bag in the truck. He went and grabbed it for me this morning. I was reading the news reports, trying to keep my mind off things.” When Sam looked up at him Dean could see the misery on his face. He spotted the bag in his brother’s hand and his eyes lit up. “Is that my medicine?”

“It is but you have to eat first. Gabe is making us all breakfast,” Dean replied.

“He cooks? What, are you both just a couple of weird Alphas?” Sam asked. His smile would have looked less like a grimace if he weren’t in so much pain.

“Well, it’s nice not being the only odd Alpha for once. He’s an ok guy, and if Cas trusts him, then so do I. As soon as you have food in your stomach I’ll give you your pill,” Dean replied. Sam let out a huff that sounded eerily like a whine but Dean understood. 

“Anything interesting?” He nodded towards the computer.

“Uh, yeah, actually. They have a detailed profile on Alistair, and they’re blasting his picture across multiple news stations and all across the internet. He’s considered dangerous and a menace to society. They also deem him as mentally unstable, like we didn’t already know that.”

“Right. But no sightings of him? No leads?” Dean asked. He knew it was wishful thinking but he was still hopeful.

“If he’s hiding in The District it’s unlikely he’ll be found. Most people there don’t have access to television or internet. They can’t afford it, so they’d be the last ones to know he’s a wanted man. Besides, the omegas there are terrified of him,” Sam said. 

“Well, I’m working on ending that kind of oppression. It’s not going to happen overnight of course, but it will end. I want to get the streets cleaned up and bring modern luxuries to the people of The District. It’s not fair that they’re being treated like second-class citizens,” Dean grumbled.

“You should seriously consider running for a political office. Your desire for equality and the fact that you stand up for those whose voices are not listened to, it brings it home to the masses,” his brother said. Dean cocked an eyebrow, looking at him like he was nuts.

“Me? In politics? What have you been smoking?”

Sam chuckled and immediately regretted it as a searing pain tore through his ribs. “I need my pain meds,” he whined.

“Come on to the kitchen then, we’ll see if Gabe at least has some cereal or something.”

Dean helped his brother up, and they headed for the kitchen. Cas and Gabe were talking softly when they walked in as Gabe filled a muffin pan with batter. 

“Blueberry muffins are in the oven now, guys. Give it fifteen minutes, and you’ll have warm, gooey, homemade muffins,” Gabe told them.

“Do you have some cereal or a pop tart or anything he can have so he can take his meds now?” Dean asked.

“Sure. How about some yogurt and a breakfast bar?” Gabe directed the question to Sam who nodded.

“Sounds good. I just want this pain to ease up.”

Gabe handed the bowl of batter to Cas, instructing him on how high to fill the rest of the cups, before he went to the fridge. He took out a yogurt and set it on the table with a spoon while he went to grab the breakfast bar. Sam had moved over to the table and lowered himself down into one of the chairs with a grimace, and Gabe slid the food closer, even pausing to open the yogurt for him.

“Thank you, Gabe, I appreciate this,” Sam said as he took the spoon and the yogurt. Gabe nodded and returned to his brother’s side to monitor the filling of the muffin pan. Dean sat down at the table and fished a pill out of the bottle. Once Sam had eaten both the yogurt and the breakfast bar he handed the pill over.

“Cas? Can you get Sam a glass of water please?” Dean asked.

“Of course.” Cas found the glasses and filled one with water. He carried it to the table and offered it to the Beta, who drank half of it down as he swallowed his pill.

“I want to go back and lay down. Sitting up hurts,” Sam said, grunting as he got back on his feet. Cas took him by the elbow and led him back to his room.

“He’s a tough one, but I know he’s hurting bad right now,” Gabe said, nodding in the direction Sam had just gone in.

“He is tough. His last Alpha underestimated just how tough.” Dean was proud of how his brother had finally been able to stand up to Luke, and walk away for good.

“Sam had an Alpha?” Gabe asked, surprised. “Were they mated?”

“They were. For several years. Bastard turned out to be a manipulative son of a bitch and tried to kill my brother. I almost killed _him_. It’s why he doesn’t trust other Alphas,” Dean explained. Gabe frowned.

“What kind of sick son of a bitch does that to someone they love?”

“He didn’t love Sam. He was just using him. My brother deserves better.” Dean knew he sounded defensive but he felt he had earned that right.

“You’re right. Like anyone, he deserves to be loved and cherished by his mate. I despise people that just use others for their own personal gain. I can sympathize with him to a point. I spent ages with my ex. She refused to let me claim her though. Should have known she didn’t love me. She was using me to support her lifestyle. I was totally and completely in love with her but she was spending my money like it was water and screwing other guys. I wasn’t surprised when she disappeared, but it still stung. And I miss my son terribly. I haven’t gotten to see him in over three years.” Gabe was losing himself in the memory of his son when the timer on the oven dinged. He shook his head and pulled the two trays of muffins out.

When Cas returned to the kitchen he helped his brother take the muffins out of the pan, moving them to plates to cool.

“You know, you and Dean are the only Alphas I know that actually like to cook. It has long been regarded as an Omega responsibility. I fail on so many levels as an Omega,” Cas said, glancing over at Dean.

“That’s not true; I think you’re the perfect Omega for me,” Dean said, grinning. Cas returned the smile.

“Well I know you’re the perfect Alpha for me. You’re everything I ever dreamed of, and then some.” He blushed as the words left his mouth and glanced nervously at his brother, who looked thoroughly amused.

“Come here,” Dean said it softly, not as a command but as a request and Cas went to him. All his life he’d been taught that a proper Omega obeyed their Alpha and did whatever he said, no matter what it was. Cas knew that Dean could give him commands, but he chose not to. As he let Dean pull him into his arms and hold him he sent up another silent prayer, thanking God or whatever higher powers there were for bringing his true mate into his life, and for doing it right when he needed the man most.

“I’m glad Cassie found you, Dean. And I’m especially glad you turned out to be his true mate and not a dick like the guy that attacked Sam last night,” Gabe said as he carried two muffins over to the table and set them down. “They’re still hot, so let them sit a while longer to cool.”

Dean wrapped his arms a little tighter around Cas’ waist and pressed a kiss to his back, through his shirt before laying his cheek against it. He could hear the Omega’s heart beating, and it was comforting to him. Cas talked about a test he planned to give his students when he went back to work and Dean listened, offering bits of advice on what else he should add to it when he was asked. Cas moved to sit in the seat next to him and as they talked they nibbled at their muffins. 

“Where did Gabe go?” Dean asked a little while later when he realized they were now alone in the kitchen. Cas looked around, realizing his brother was gone.

“I’m not sure.”

Dean stood up and followed the other Alpha’s scent until he heard voices coming from his brother’s room. He knocked on the door before opening it. Sam was sitting up in the bed eating a muffin. A glass of milk sat on the nightstand. 

“Hey,” Sam greeted him. His voice was thick and Dean knew the pain meds had kicked in already.

“Feeling better?” he asked.

“Oh, much. Gabe brought me a muffin, said those pills are strong and the yogurt and bar I had before won’t be enough food to keep them down, so he wanted me to eat more.” Gabe had a chair pulled up next to the bed and was sitting in it. He smiled up at Dean.

“I’ve had to take pain meds before, and it’s no fun when they make you toss your cookies,” he explained. Dean nodded.

“Yeah, I get it. Get some rest, ok, Sammy?” He looked at his brother, who seemed to be on the verge of dozing off.

“Will do,” Sam replied with a sleepy grin.

“Those are definitely some strong pills,” Dean mused. Gabe sighed and looked at Sam again as the muffin began to slip from his fingers. He caught it before it could fall and set it back on the plate next to the bed. Dean’s phone rang, and he excused himself to go answer it. 

Out of the bedroom, Dean headed towards the back door as he pulled his phone out and accepted the call.

“Hello?” 

“Mr. Winchester, your plane is ready. We can have it in the air as soon as you get here.” The man on the other end of the line said.

“Fine. We’ll be there shortly.” Dean disconnected the call and went back to the kitchen where Cas was tidying up. He smiled as the Alpha walked in the room.

“Is the medicine helping yet?” he asked.

“Oh yeah, Sam’s in heaven right about now.” Dean laughed.

“Good. I still feel so terrible that he got hurt.” Cas’ eyes fell to the wet washcloth in his hand and he frowned. Dean scented his distress in the air and moved to soothe his mate.

“Shh, it’s not your fault. I’ve told you that already. Alistair is just a sick fuck. Sam was looking up articles on the internet before, and they said Alistair is mentally unstable. We’re going to take a bit of time to ourselves though. Come on, we’re going to Chicago.” He pulled the wet cloth from Cas’ hands and folded it over the edge of the sink.

“I’ve never been out of the city. What is Chicago like?” Cas went from wringing the cloth to wringing his hands together nervously.

“It’s big and it’s crowded, but we won’t encounter nearly as much sexism there. You’ll be treated with a bit more respect than you get here.”

Cas nodded. At that moment he wanted to be anywhere Alistair wasn’t.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...I hope you liked that. Leave a comment, let me know what you think, and thank you for following along with this story!


	12. Turbulence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Cas head to the airport and board the private jet to Chicago. Problem is, Dean hates flying. Cas has a way to take his mind off it though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is some fluff, smut, and general romance. Enjoy!

After being assured that Sam would be ok staying with Gabe, Dean took Gabe’s car, and he drove himself and his mate to the airport. Once they were parked and had made their way to the plane, Dean’s nerves began to show. He held Cas’ hand a little tighter as they climbed the steps.

“Is this a private jet?” Cas asked as they settled into their seats.

“Yes, it’s owned by a friend of mine. He’s thinking of buying a new one and selling this one to me, but I really don’t like flying.” Dean was tense and Cas took his hand, gently kissing the back of it as the engines started. 

“Fuck, I hate flying,” Dean hissed as they began to taxi down the runway. They were alone, no staff except for the pilots at his request and as the plane lifted into the air he actually whimpered and squeezed his eyes shut. 

“Dean?” Cas asked.

“What?” He didn’t mean to snap but he was scared. Cas understood though. Dean felt it when the Omega got up from his seat next to him and opened his eyes in surprise when a second later he found Cas straddling his lap.

“What are you doing, babe?” he asked. Cas leaned forward, burying his nose in his mate’s neck as he purred softly. And then Dean understood. His mate was trying to soothe him. He slid his hands under Cas’ shirt and pulled him closer. 

“How long til we’re in Chicago?” Cas asked. Dean became aware of the smell of slick in the air and let out a low growl.

“An hour, maybe a little longer, why?”

“Knot me, Alpha, please.” Cas could feel Dean responding to his words as well as the scent of arousal he was exuding. He was desperate to distract his Alpha and alleviate his fears of being on the plane. They had an hour to themselves, and he found that he wanted his Alpha again. Mating with Dean the day before had been the most pleasurable experience of his life and wanted to experience it again. He knew Dean would be responsive and as the Alpha pushed his shirt up and over his head, he sighed with contentment. 

“You’re so beautiful.” The Alpha purred as he leaned forward to nip at the mating mark on Cas’ shoulder.

“Dean!” Cas gasped. Dean chuckled and licked across the mark as he lifted the Omega up. There was a couch a few feet away, and he laid Cas out on it. Slowly he removed his pants and shoes, his eyes flickering to red for a second as he noticed the slick that was beginning to pool on the seat beneath his mate. He dropped to his knees and as Cas watched, he pushed the Omega’s legs apart and buried his face between his legs, lapping at the slick before running his tongue around his still sensitive hole. His mate whined and begged, thrusting down against the tongue Dean had shoved deep inside of him and it spurred the Alpha on. When Cas came it was with a loud scream and his entire body going rigid as semen splattered across his chest and face.

“Fuck that’s hot,” Dean growled as he stood up and dropped his own pants. Cas slipped as he scrambled to turn over and present, his hand sliding across the cushion from the slick. Dean caught him and pulled him back before he face planted on the couch and pulled Cas back against him.

“Easy, please,” Cas begged and Dean loosened his grip on the Omega’s hips. His instincts were driving him to shove himself as deep as his Omega could take him, but there was fear in his mate’s scent and he had promised to be gentle with him. 

“Of course,” he murmured against his mate’s neck as he eased slowly in. “Am I hurting you?” 

“No, feels good.” Cas pressed back against him, urging him to start moving. 

Dean took his time, focusing on the warm, tight heat of his mate rather than the air turbulence outside. As his knot began to swell and catch, he wrapped one arm firmly around Cas’ torso while the other wandered lower, taking the Omega’s cock in his hand. Cas was hard again, and he let out a growl of his own as he shoved back against the Alpha, locking them together.

“Oh…God…” Dean gasped as he filled his mate up. Cas whimpered, and Dean pulled him back against his chest. He hadn’t thought this through well enough and now they were stuck like this on a narrow couch for at least the next thirty minutes. Being careful as he lifted his mate, Dean got off his knees and sat down on the couch, careful not to hurt Cas as he settled him in his lap.

“I wish I was facing you.” Cas turned his head as much as he could to kiss Dean who leaned eagerly into it.

“Yeah, hindsight is 20/20,” Dean chuckled.

“Can we do this on the way home?” Cas asked. Dean nipped at the Omega’s mating mark, causing Cas to moan and clench around him, dragging another orgasm from the Alpha.

“Absolutely. Thank you.” Dean kissed his shoulder and wrapped his arms around his mate before resting his head on Cas’ back.

“When my knot goes down there’s a shower on the plane. I want us to get cleaned up. I don’t want us walking around the city stinking of sex,” Dean told him.

“I-I didn’t even think of that. I’m sorry.” Cas turned his head but couldn’t see Dean’s face.

“It’s alright, baby. I’d have stopped you if I didn’t know about the shower.” Dean caressed the Omega’s stomach as his thoughts turned to how his mate would look filled up, carrying his pup. It made his dick twitch, even as it was beginning to soften.

“What was that for?” Cas asked. Dean chuckled and buried his face between his mate’s shoulder blades in embarrassment.

I was sort of picturing what you’d look like…carrying my pup,” he admitted. Cas looked down at the hands currently splayed across his stomach and smiled.

“It’s a possibility, you know. I can get pregnant outside of my heat cycles.”

Dean lifted his head and looked at his mate as he turned as much as he could to meet his eye.

“How do you feel about that?” he asked.

“I would love to carry your pup, Dean, you know that. Whether it’s now or at some further point in time is not the issue, but I need to know that if that happens, it will be safe.”

“Nothing and no one is going to touch you or our pups.” Dean bristled at the very thought of anyone threatening his mate or their children. He growled, low and threatening, and Cas was annoyed that he wasn’t able to bury his nose in his mate’s neck and soothe him.

“Shhh, I trust that you will keep me safe, and our pups safe.” Cas placed his hands over Dean’s and rubbed them gently. He loved this Alpha and trusted him. Dean would do everything in his power to protect him.

When they were finally able to pull apart Dean surprised him by lifting him up and carrying him to the small bathroom at the back of the plane. It was a tight fit and they elbowed one another several times, but Dean was insistent that he be the one to clean his mate up, and Cas was happy to let him. Afterwards, they located their clothing and got dressed again.

“Where we go, could I maybe get some new underwear and a new pair of pants? These got some slick in them and it’s really cold against my skin. I’m afraid people will smell it.” Cas pulled at his pants where they stuck to his inner thigh and grimaced.

“Of course. I’ll buy you an actual wardrobe today, anything you want.” Dean pulled his Omega back against him and nuzzled the mating mark.

“Thank you, Dean.” Cas sighed. Being held in his Alpha’s arms was quickly becoming his favorite thing in the world.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean was more relaxed as the plane descended, still riding high on the post sex endorphins, and Cas was glad. He didn’t like seeing his mate upset. The flight wasn’t bad at all for his first time and when the plane came to a stop and Dean opened the door, his eyes widened. He’d never seen such a large airport anywhere but in books. Stairs were rolled up to the door and Dean took his hand as they went down them.

 

“Where are we going first?” Cas asked as Dean led him to a rental car that had been readied for them.

“First, we get proper clothing. Then we’ll check in on the shops I have in the area,” Dean replied. Cas nodded and secured his seatbelt. His eyes were wide as they left the airport and got onto the highway. Dean was amused by his mate’s reaction.

“I am so taking you on a vacation this summer once school has ended,” Dean chuckled. Cas turned to look at him, a huge smile on his face.

“Really? Where would we go?” 

“Anywhere you want. If you want an African safari, we’ll do that. If you want to kick back on the beaches of San Pedro, we’ll do that. Whatever you want, we’ll do,” Dean told him. Cas’ mind was reeling at the thought.

“We could perhaps go and see the Grand Canyon? I’ve always wanted to see it.”

“Absolutely. I’ve only driven near it but never stopped to actually admire it, so it’ll be a first for us both.” Dean reached over and took his mate’s hand. Just this time alone together felt like a vacation to them both. If he didn’t have Sam injured and being watched over by an Alpha he didn’t know terribly well, he’d have gone ahead and booked the most romantic hotel room he could find on such short notice and spoil his Omega rotten.

They drove to a mall in the suburbs on the outskirts of the city and Dean took his Omega’s arm, threading it through his own as he led him into the building. Cas stuck close, his eyes darting around the massive hall at everyone that passed them.

“Shh, sweetheart, it’s alright. No one’s going to hurt you.” Dean pulled his arm away so that he could put it around Cas’ waist. The Omega’s arm snaked around his waist in return. 

“What about there? Those clothes look nice.” Cas pointed at an Old Navy store.

“Really?” Dean laughed. They had stopped walking and Cas looked up at him with a puzzled expression.

“Are their clothes not good?” he asked.

“Nah, they’re fine. Sam shops there sometimes. Come on, maybe you’ll find some things you’ll like.” Dean led him into the store and watched as Cas looked through the tables full of shirts and khakis. He spotted a rack of sweaters he felt Cas would look good in and made his way over to them. He picked out a blue one and a brown one before returning to where Cas was standing with two tee shirts in his hands.

“Baby, grab more than that if you like them.” Dean reached out and picked up several more tee shirts, checking the sizes before adding them to the pile Cas was holding.

“I feel like I’m being greedy. I-I have some money now that I don’t have the rent to pay.” Cas looked up shyly. “But my wallet is back at the house.”

“You’re not being greedy, and you’re not paying. Whatever you want to do with your money is fine by me, but I told you that I will take care of you. I _want_ to take care of you. Get whatever you want.” He placed a hand against his mate’s cheek and caressed it softly. Cas smiled and pointed at the sweaters in the Alpha’s hands.

“What are those?”

Dean pulled his hand back so he could hold one of the sweaters up. “I thought these might look nice on you, and keep you warm at work. I know the heating probably isn’t the best at the school.”

Cas’ smile grew wider. “That’s true. The children and myself, we usually end up wearing our winter coats by the time the end of January arrives. The heaters just don’t put out enough heat, and the place is extremely drafty as well. I think these will do very nicely, thank you. Did you choose blue for a reason?” 

“It matches your eyes,” Dean admitted, his cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink as he folded the sweater over his arm again. Cas batted his eyes and grinned, which just made Dean laugh.

“Come on, there are jeans this way. We should get your size and at least two sizes higher so that once you’re completely up to a proper weight you won’t necessarily have to go out and buy a whole new wardrobe.” Dean explained as they made their way to a display of jeans.

“I like the way you think,” Cas said as he put the tee shirts over his shoulder and began checking the sizes on the pants. 

“Try a few pairs on,” Dean told him. 

“Dean, I’m not…wearing any underwear,” Cas hissed as he looked nervously around.

“I’ll fix that. Be right back.” Dean disappeared and returned a minute later with a pack of boxer briefs. “Put on a pair before you try the jeans on. I’m buying them anyway, and I’ll explain it to the cashier if I have to.” Cas accepted the underwear and picked out several more pairs of jeans before he started for the dressing rooms. Dean followed, grabbing a few more items as they went. He waited patiently for Cas to try on the pants and settle on an outfit he was comfortable in. While Cas finished dressing he took the remaining clothes and the tags from what his mate was still putting on and headed up to the registers. 

He had just paid when Cas appeared. He actually had to do a double take.

“Wow, babe, you look amazing.” Cas smiled shyly as he smoothed his hands down the front of the tee shirt he was wearing.

“Thank you.” His eyes were drawn to a rack of small tee shirts and he lifted one up to read it. “Oh, Dean, these are for little dogs! They’re so cute!” Dean arched an eyebrow as Cas went through each of the shirts, laughing at the words written on them. He put them back and gave them one last fond look before following Dean out of the store.

“You’ve never seen those before?” Dean asked as they walked along.

“I’ve seen some dogs in sweaters in nicer neighborhoods in the winter, but nothing like those. Oh, if we get a dog, can I buy one? Please?” Cas clasped his hands together and looked up at his Alpha with so much hope in his eyes that Dean couldn’t help but grin. He rolled his eyes and nodded.

“Yeah, sure, but the dog won’t like it, they never do.”

“I won’t leave it on all the time, but I’d like to walk them and have them wear it. I think it would be cute,” Cas said. He spotted a store with shoes and glanced down at his own. He’d had the ones he was currently wearing for at least ten years now and they were full of holes. Dean noticed and started for the store.

“What are you doing?” Cas asked as he hurried to catch up.

“You need shoes. And we’re giving those things a proper burial, and by that I mean they’re getting tossed in the nearest trash can.” Dean laughed. Cas blushed and followed the Alpha down several aisles until they reached the men’s shoes. A saleslady came and measured his foot, and Dean selected no less than ten different pairs in his size, making him try them all on. He watched as his mate talked styles, comfort, purpose and durability with the sales rep, loving it when Dean pulled him into the conversation each time the rep, a Beta, tried to deliberately exclude him. In the end he left the decision up to Cas, and the Omega settled on three new pairs of shoes, gym shoes that he planned to wear out of the store, a more casual pair of loafers that he could wear to work or at home, and a pair of work boots for working around the yard. Almost as an afterthought Dean bought him a pair of warm slippers and a pair of flip flops as well. 

“Dean, we have too much stuff, and we haven’t even shopped for you or Sam yet,” Cas said as he tried to juggle the bags he was carrying.

“Come on, we’ll drop this stuff off in the car and come back in.” Dean started back the way they had come and they went back out to the car where the Alpha put everything into the spacious trunk. He set the alarm and took Cas’ hand, leading him back inside.

They stopped in a store for big and tall men where Dean snagged several pairs of sweatpants, jeans, and shirts for his brother before heading across the hall to a store that made Cas smirk to see. Everything in the windows was full of flannel and jeans. 

“I think you would look very nice in this,” Cas said as he held up a tee shirt that he knew would hug the Alpha’s chest and stomach. He felt a flash of heat in his groin just thinking about how hot his mate would look in it.

“Cas, babe,” Dean laughed, his eyes wide with surprise. Cas looked up with equally wide eyes.

“What?”

“I can smell you. Are you…horny?” Dean dropped his voice and leaned closer as he spoke. Cas blushed and sucked his lower lip between his teeth as he looked down at the shirt again.

“I would like to see you in this,” he murmured. Dean snatched the shirt from his hands.

“If wearing it is going to get even half the reaction that you picturing me in it just did, I’ll wear nothing but this shirt for the rest of my days!” He added it to the pile of clothes he had chosen for himself, laughing when he noticed Cas grab two more similar tee shirts in different colors.

With enough clothes to last them for a week or two they deposited all of the new bags back in the car before heading inside again to get something to eat. Cas was in awe of all the different types of food available and was having a difficult time choosing what he wanted to try.

“Baby, how about I surprise you? Find us a seat and I’ll bring the food in a few minutes.” Cas smiled and nodded.

“Alright.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas wandered through the food court until he found a table that looked clean and sat down. He watched Dean walking around for a few minutes before his attention was drawn to the people around him. There were women on cell phones, teenagers laughing and joking around, families enjoying their afternoon together, and a few tables away a young man got down on one knee in front of a pretty young girl with pale, blonde hair. He smiled as he saw the young man withdraw a small, black box from his inner pocket and open it. The girl squealed loud enough that everyone in the food court could hear, and all heads turned in her direction. The room fell silent as the young man proposed. The moment her head nodded and she said yes, everyone burst into applause. Cas clapped too. He felt overwhelming joy for the newly engaged couple as he watched the young man sweep the girl up into his arms and kiss her. It was perhaps the sweetest thing he had ever seen in his entire life. He was still smiling when Dean arrived with their food and set the tray down.

“That was something, wasn’t it? Not where I would have done it, but I overheard the guy saying this was where they met. That the moment he saw her here in the food court, he knew she was the one. So I get why he did it here. I’m happy for them,” Dean said as he set a plastic container down in front of Cas.

“It was the most beautiful thing I think I’ve ever seen. I am very happy for them both,” Cas said as he took the lid off the container. He frowned at the slimy looking mess inside. “Dean, what is this?”

“Chinese. Have you ever had Chinese?” Dean asked.

“No, I don’t believe I have.” Cas picked up a fork and poked at the noodles a bit before twirling some around the utensil and bringing it to his mouth. As he chewed he considered each flavor he tasted on his tongue.

“This is not a dish I am particularly fond of, but it’s not bad.” He took another forkful.

“Do you like spicy food?” Dean asked.

“Yes, I do,” Cas replied. Dean speared a piece of his food and held it up to his mate. Cas pulled it into his mouth and chewed. 

“Wow, you weren’t kidding about the spicy!” He fanned at his mouth, which got Dean laughing as he held out a cup to him. Cas chugged the iced tea down. “I like that, what is that called?”

“General Tsao’s chicken. It’s a guilty pleasure. I don’t eat it often, it gives me heartburn,” Dean admitted.

“Oh, I think I know what you mean.” Cas grimaced as his stomach churned. Dean offered him a small cup and when Cas pulled the lid off he was surprised to find that it contained ice cream.

“Take a couple of bites. It will neutralize the burn,” Dean instructed. He handed over a plastic spoon and Cas dug into the ice cream. It was vanilla, and he moaned as the flavor washed over his burning tongue. The sweet taste was pure bliss. 

“I haven’t had ice cream since I was a child. This is delicious, thank you,” Cas said as he devoured the contents of the cup. Dean chuckled and finished off his food. Cas hadn’t touched the rest of his food so he stood up.

“Where are you going?” Cas asked.

“To find you something you’ll actually eat. Don’t feel bad about not liking that, this is mall food, not real Chinese anyway. But I think Japanese might be more to your liking. I’ll be right back.” Dean headed over to a restaurant that sold Japanese food and Cas found himself hoping it tasted better than the slimy noodles in front of him. When Dean returned he set a container down in front of the Omega that had sushi in it.

“Oh, I’ve always wanted to try sushi,” Cas said as he opened the container.

“This is the stuff I’ll actually eat. It’s not all good and some of it is just too strange for me. I can’t bring myself to willingly eat baby octopi. It just seems cruel. I stick to fish, rice, and seaweed, with some other things mixed in. If you don’t like that, there are nine more places to try.” Dean said, amusement sparkling in his eyes.

Cas decided to try using the chopsticks that had been included with his meal and gingerly lifted one of the rolls with it. He popped it in his mouth, nodding in approval as he chewed. “This is much better.” He finished the rest of the rolls fairly quickly, and then Dean was telling him it was time to leave.

“So soon?” Cas looked longingly at all the stores they hadn’t yet gotten to go into but he understood, the sun was going to be down soon and Dean’s shops would begin closing up in the next few hours. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The drive to the first shop was shorter than Cas expected, and soon they were pulling into the parking lot. As soon as people realized “the boss” was there, they began scrambling to look busier than they actually were. Cas hung back a bit, waiting for Dean to do whatever it was he needed to do. He didn’t want to interrupt, but Dean caught his hand and pulled him forward. The men and few women that worked there eyed the Omega mostly with curiosity until Dean introduced him.

“This is my mate, Cas. Get used to seeing this gorgeous face because you’ll be seeing a lot more of him. As I travel around to the shops, more often than not he’ll be accompanying me. If I catch anyone disrespecting him or pulling any sexist bullshit you _will_ receive your walking papers. You all are fully aware of my stance on sexism and segregation. You will show him the same respect you show me.” Dean’s voice was commanding and everyone listened. 

When he was finished talking, he looked around at his crew. Most were Betas but there were a few Omegas and Alphas throw in there too. He kissed his Omega gently on the cheek before heading back to the store manager’s office so he could review the inventory, leaving Cas standing awkwardly with the mechanics all staring at him. One man stepped forward and offered his hand. An Alpha by the smell of it. His smile was warm, and his scent was neutral. 

“Hello there, Cas. My name’s Victor. Me and Dean go way back. Met in high school. I heard he’d found a mate. It’s nice to meet you.”

Cas shook the man’s hand and smiled politely. “It is very nice to meet you as well, Victor.”

“So what do you do for a living?” Victor asked. Cas was impressed that the man didn’t automatically assume he was just a house Omega because of his orientation.

“I am an English teacher. I teach at a high school down in Kansas,” he replied. Victor raised an eyebrow, his smile growing wider.

“Really? Do you think you could help my son? He’s failing English. Do you Skype?” 

“I’m afraid I don’t even know what that is,” Cas told him.

“It’s alright, just ask Dean. My son’s a freshman and he’s struggling to comprehend Shakespeare. I’ve asked around, but no one knows how to really help him,” Victor said.

“I will talk to Dean and learn about Skype. From there I will try to assist the best I can. Not everyone gets Shakespeare, but once a child can comprehend what he is trying to convey in his work, it’s like a lightbulb goes off.” Cas loved Shakespeare, and he would derive much pleasure from assisting Victor’s son, even if he did it long distance. 

Dean returned to find his mate explaining the plot of Hamlet to Victor and several other people, all were listening intently.

“That’s a smart man you found, Dean. You need to educate him on Skype though. He’s going to try and get Robby to bring his English grade up. He’s failing it right now,” Victor said as he clapped Dean on the back.

“Cas is the smartest man I know, next to Sammy. When things calm down back home I’ll definitely show him how to use it,” Dean said.

“What’s going on at home?” Victor asked. With a heavy sigh Dean explained the Alpha problem they were having and the break in. He left out the gory details though.

“But he has to know you mated with Cas, right? And he can’t contest that claim, no matter what.” Victor was concerned for his friend, and it was beginning to leak out in his scent.

“Oh, he knows. He’s just too crazy to care. If he gets caught, he’s facing up to thirty years for his threat to my claim and his assault on Sam. And that’s if his extracurricular activities don’t come to light as well,” Dean said smugly.

“And of course, they will,” Victor said, grinning. 

“Damn right they will.” 

Cas liked that Victor included him in the conversation, asking him about The District and showing genuine concern for the life the Omega had led before finding Dean. He decided that as far as Alphas went, he liked Victor. They stopped briefly at three more shops before Dean announced they were heading out to East Chicago. He made a couple of phone calls before they arrived and Cas was surprised to see men in suits waiting for them.

“Who are they, Dean? Why are they here?” he asked as they got out of the car.

“Security. The man I have managing this shop can be rather volatile and he has a nasty temper. My guys here will prevent him from doing something really stupid,” Dean replied.

“Like?” Cas asked.

“Attacking me. Or you. I’ll rip his throat out if he touches you.” Though his words were hard, his expression was soft as he took Cas’ hand and pulled him closer.

“Should I be scared?” 

“No, sweetheart. I won’t let him or anyone touch you, I promise.” He put his arm around his mate’s waist as he approached the security staff and gave them a brief synopsis of what was happening. He told them to wait as he led Cas into the shop. A short woman came out from behind the counter and hugged Dean.

“What brings you all the way up here, boy?” she asked, smiling warmly up at the Alpha. Cas could tell she was a Beta and apparently she had a good relationship with Dean judging by the goofy grin on his mate’s face.

“Doing random spot checks. People seem to think I’m not paying attention, but I am. The accounting isn’t matching up to the inventory. I’m losing money on this shop. Do you know what’s going on?” Dean asked her. The woman frowned and turned to look through window at the men working out in the garage.

“It’s Gordon. He took over the inventory beginning of last year. Said he could do it better than me. Won’t let me even go over the numbers now,” she replied. Dean patted her shoulder.

“It’s alright, Missouri. Seeing as how he was the one signing off, I assumed it was him. Can you keep my mate here company while I go and have a word with Gordon?” he asked. She smiled at Cas and offered her hand.

“Nice to meet you, sugar, my name’s Missouri Mosely, but don’t you dare go calling me Mrs. Mosely or I’ll have to box your ears. Missouri will do just fine.”

Cas chuckled and smiled at the woman. “It’s nice to meet you, Missouri. I’m Cas.”

Dean was already walking away, motioning to his men to follow him as he entered the garage and went in search of the man he’d been talking to Missouri about.

“You thirsty?” Missouri was digging around in a mini fridge behind the counter and she offered him a bottle of water. He accepted it and thanked her.

“So Dean finally settled down. I’d heard a rumor through the Winchester grapevine he’d found his true mate. I’m guessing that’s you,” she said. 

“That would be me, yes,” he confirmed.

“You’re a skinny little thing. He find you in The District?” The way she said it, it was like the words were bitter in her mouth. Even this far north The District had earned a bad reputation.

“I was actually waiting tables as a second job, working for his aunt after another Alpha busted up my car. I happened to be working the night Dean came in,” he explained. She smiled and leaned on the counter next to him.

“I’ve known that boy since he was in diapers. I was friends with his mama. He’s a good boy, and you’re a lucky one to have him for a mate. A lot of men and women have chased after him for a long time now, including Gordon. He ain’t gonna be happy that Dean’s gone and mated himself to an Omega, but that’s just too bad for him now, isn’t it?” She gave a full belly laugh that had Cas grinning like a fool. He liked this woman. It was clear that Dean liked employing friends and people he trusted. 

“Mate or not, I’d never give Dean up, I love him,” he said softly. Missouri smiled fondly at him.

“I can see. And he loves you too. You planning on pups? He’d make a fantastic father, but I get the feeling you would be quite loving and nurturing yourself.” 

Unconsciously Cas rubbed at his belly. What if he was already with pup? It was an exciting and scary thought. He had hoped to have more time with just him and his mate before pups came into the picture, but at the same time he’d never felt so safe and loved before in his life.

“We’re not trying to prevent it.” He smiled shyly and her own smile grew wider.

“Well good for you, honey! I can’t wait to see the beautiful pups you and Dean make. You’re both so handsome. Ain’t no ugly pups coming from either of you!”

“Where are you from, if I might ask?” Cas still had one hand over his belly, though he wasn’t paying attention. 

“Georgia, originally. Spent a number of years in Kansas. I know what a shit state it is as far as laws and human rights go. That’s why I left. I was gifted with six sons, four of which are Omegas. I wasn’t going to raise them around such bigotry. I was already here when Dean decided to open up this shop. Called me up, asked me if I wanted a job. Five of my six boys work here too,” she replied proudly.

“Gordon’s…not…” Cas frowned and looked back towards the window in the door between the lobby and the garage. Dean was nowhere in sight.

“Oh hell no! Gordon has been managing this place for the last year since Percy retired, but my boy Dennis is next in line to be manager. He’s an Omega.” Her pride grew exponentially. So Gordon’s theft left the opening for Missouri’s son. Cas was glad that an Omega was getting a chance to hold a higher-paying position. Maybe one day they’d get to hold even higher positions. CEO’s, VP’s…President of the United States. For just a moment he entertained the thought that he could give birth to a future president. He was still smiling like an idiot when the bell over the front door chimed. Both Missouri and Cas turned to see an angry looking man walk in. His dark skin was matched only by his dark eyes that seemed so full of rage. He was clearly an Alpha and Cas instinctively stepped back, moving closer to Missouri who grabbed his arm and pulled him behind the desk with her.

“What?” The man snapped irritably.

“Dean Winchester’s here. He’s out there looking for you,” Missouri nodded towards the garage. The man’s eyes narrowed as he looked through the window in the door.

“What’s Winchester doing here?” His tone was wary and his scent told them that the man knew exactly why Dean had come. Suddenly the man’s head whipped around, and his eyes were boring into Cas.

“Who are you?” he growled. Cas knew the Alpha could smell his fear but he couldn’t help it. He was trembling and clinging to Missouri’s arm, not that the tiny Beta could protect him, but because she seemed to sense the Alpha’s anger and knew better than he how to placate the man.

“Now Gordon, don’t you be starting drama in my lobby. Dean’s looking for you, he needs to talk to you. Go find him.” Missouri had a no nonsense air about her, and while she was wary of Gordon, she was not yet scared. The Alpha closed the gap between himself and Cas, grabbing the Omega by the back of his neck and scenting him against his will. He snarled and pulled back the edge of Cas’ tee shirt, letting out a howl at the sight of the mating mark that rested there.

“Please, don’t,” Cas pleaded. He had dropped the water bottle and instinctively brought his hands up to push back against the imposing Alpha.

“He fucking mated?!” Gordon snarled, his fangs elongating. Absolutely terrified now, Cas’ legs gave out and he fell to his knees. Gordon grabbed the front of his shirt and hauled him back to his feet. Cas could see the bitter, black hatred in the man’s eyes and he closed his own eyes against it.

“Mother fucker! _Get off him!_ ” Suddenly the grasp on the front of Cas’ shirt was gone and he stumbled backwards. Missouri caught him before he fell, and he watched as his mate wrestled Gordon to the floor before his security staff took over. The moment they had Gordon under control Dean was at Cas’ side.

“Are you ok? Did he hurt you?” Dean’s hands were roaming everywhere, looking for possible injuries but other than a few scratches on his neck, he none the worse for wear.

“I want to go home, please take me home.” Cas broke down into tears and Dean held him close.

“Of course, sweetheart. We’ll leave as soon as the police get here.” He guided his mate through a door at the back of the lobby and down a narrow hall. There were doors on either side and Dean stopped in front of one. He turned the knob and the door swung open, revealing a breakroom. 

“We’ll wait in here until they come,” he said as he guided Cas to a small couch and sat down. The Omega curled up in his lap, clinging to him. 

“Was he going to kill me?” Cas asked. His voice was still shaky and his death grip on Dean’s flannel had not loosened, but the Alpha wasn’t bothered by it. He wrapped his arms tighter around his mate and nuzzled against his neck. Ideally he wanted to have skin on skin contact with his mate, but this was neither the time nor the place.

“No one really knows what Gordon’s capable of, but honey, I could feel your terror. I knew immediately that you were in trouble. I ran from the other end of the garage the moment I felt your heartbeat increase. I let my men take care of him because I was afraid I’d be the one to kill him,” Dean admitted. 

“You’re a good Alpha, Dean. It’s why I love you so much.” Cas slowly started to relax in Dean’s arms, even letting the Alpha tug down the collar of his shirt so he could lick and nuzzle against the mating mark. Cas groaned before baring his neck to his mate.

“Save that for the plane, sweetheart. You’ve got me so hard I’m afraid the zipper on my jeans might bust,” Dean told him. Cas lifted his head to look at him.

“You’ll knot me again on the plane, right?” 

“Are you horny again?” Dean asked. Cas blushed and ducked his head, laying it on the Alpha’s shoulder so he didn’t have to look his mate in the eye.

“I find that I like it. A lot,” he replied softly. Dean couldn’t help but chuckle.

“I think I’ve created a monster,” he teased.

“Would that be a bad thing?” Cas asked.

“Hell no! I’m actually looking forward to the flight back.” He slid a hand up the back of his mate’s shirt, letting his fingers glide over the warm skin. All he wanted was skin on skin, and it was frustrating him that he couldn’t get that right now. A knock at the door startled him out of his thoughts and made Cas whimper when Dean actually jumped.

“Yeah?” Dean called out.

“Mr. Winchester, the police are here. They’d like to come in and speak with you and your mate,” Missouri said.

Dean moved Cas onto the seat next to him and took his hand. “Let them in.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I hope you enjoyed this particular chapter. Leave me a comment, and thank you for reading!


	13. The Flight Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Dean return home, but something is rotten in the state of Denmark...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, have some more smut. I love you all!

The interview with the police was brief and in less than an hour Dean and Cas were back on the road. The Alpha called ahead to the plane, making sure it was fueled and ready, and to Cas’ surprise there were more men in suits waiting when they pulled into the airport. Dean instructed them to take all of their bags to the plane as he took his mate’s hand. They walked between four men the size of linebackers, all Alphas as they walked through the airport to their plane.

“Why are they with us? They’re not flying back with us, are they?” Cas asked nervously.

“No, baby, but I received word they aren’t holding Gordon, and I don’t trust him.” Dean slipped an arm around his mate’s waist and pulled him closer. “They’re escorting us to the plane, and they’ll inspect it to make sure everything is safe before we board.” 

“Why wouldn’t it be safe? What, do you think Gordon might have gotten on and hid?” Cas asked, shocked by the very thought.

“I’m not taking any chances. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe.” 

They had reached the plane, and they waited while the security staff boarded the plane with their bags. When they finally emerged, giving the all clear, Dean practically pulled Cas up the stairs and into the plane.

“I know now is not a good time to say this, but I’m hungry,” Cas said as he watched Dean seal the door.

“Can it wait til we land?” Dean asked.

“Of course. I’m used to being hungry; I just know you don’t like for me to be.” Cas replied. The engines were starting and Dean walked over to his mate, pulling the pliant Omega firmly against him.

“There are some snacks you can munch on while you’re knotted. How does that sound?” He purred against his mate’s ear, an invitation to the man to begin undressing, which Cas immediately did. 

“Yeah, later.” Cas breathed out as he practically climbed up his Alpha, wrapping his legs around his mate’s waist and his arms around the man’s neck. He pulled him into a kiss so deep Dean nearly fell over where he was standing when the plane hit a bump on the runway. Holding on tightly to his Omega, he moved to the couch and sat down, letting Cas release his death grip around his waist and instead straddle him.

“Need you, Alpha, want you so bad,” Cas whimpered as he nipped at the mating mark on Dean’s neck.

“Fuck…baby, what has gotten into you?” Dean gasped. Cas pulled back, a look of shock and embarrassment on his face.

“It’s not normal? Oh God…” His entire face was turning red and it was spreading down his neck. Dean wanted to kick himself for causing his mate to become self-conscious.

“Yes, it’s perfectly normal. Baby, you went from never in your life having sex to mating sex and constant access to your ready and willing Alpha. Your body is just trying to make up for lost time, I think. But don’t you worry, I like it. God knows I want you, as much as you’ll have me. Even if I can’t walk straight the next day or my legs give out. You’re worth it. I didn’t mean to embarrass you, I’m sorry.” Dean put a hand under his mate’s chin and lifted his head until they were looking at each other.

“You’re turned on a lot now, huh.” Cas tried again to lower his eyes in submission, but Dean wouldn’t let him. He whimpered and pushed Dean’s hand away so he could lean into his mate. 

“Yes. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I can’t stop thinking about you, and about being knotted.” Cas licked again at the mark he’d left on his mate and Dean’s dick throbbed in response. He grabbed at his mate’s hips, pulling him down hard so he could rut against him.

“Dean!” Cas cried. 

“Come here, I’m going to take care of you.” Dean laid Cas out on the couch, which to his delight had been cleaned since their foray this morning and pushed the Omega’s legs apart.

“You’re still dressed,” Cas pouted. Dean winked and smiled flirtatiously before nipping lightly at the sensitive skin on his mate’s inner thigh.

“I know I am. I want to take care of _you_ right now.” When Cas tried to sit up he gently but firmly pushed him back down. A second later his tongue was circling the Omega’s hole, making his mate cry out. The slick began to increase until there was so much pouring out it was pooling again on the couch beneath him. Dean wanted a repeat performance of the flight in, his Omega writhing as he licked and sucked at his leaking hole, lapping up as much of the delicious tasting slick as he possibly could until his mate felt like exploding. He slipped a finger in alongside his tongue and slowly began opening Cas up. The first brush across his mate’s prostate with two well placed fingers had the man coming so hard he was seeing stars. He was gasping hard, and when he blinked he found his now naked mate hovering above him, a possessive growl on his lips. The Alpha’s eyes were red and for some reason that turned him on even more. He made a keening noise he didn’t even know he was capable of making and the Alpha growled louder in response. Parting his legs more he reached down to touch his already stretched hole, moaning at how good it felt. Slick was still pouring out and he coated his hand in it.

“Please, I need you.” He took Dean’s throbbing cock in hand, stroking it until it was covered in the slick, and then guiding it in.

“You never cease to amaze me. You’re so fucking sexy,” Dean growled as he began to thrust.

“Faster, please!” Cas begged. Dean’s usual slow, gentle pace felt wonderful most of the time but right now he was craving it hard and fast. The Alpha obliged, grunting louder as he thrust harder into his mate. His Omega felt like heaven, smelled like heaven, tasted like heaven, and he couldn’t get enough of him. The more his Omega begged, the more he gave until he felt the heat coiling in his belly just before his knot popped, and he was locked inside his mate. He let out a roar as he came, clamping down on the mating bite as a second orgasm ripped through him. The moment his teeth clamped down, Cas came, unbeknownst to Dean, for a third time, and screamed, arching his back and clawing at his Alpha as he tried pulling the man closer. 

As they came down off their high and their breathing began returning to normal Dean realized he was going to crush Cas if he continued to lay on top of him. The Omega had dozed off so it took careful maneuvering to get into a sitting position with his mate in his lap, but he managed it. Cas’ head rested on his shoulder as he snored softly. Dean caressed his back softly as he waited for his knot to go down. Rough sex was not something he had ever expected with his mate, and he found himself worrying that Cas would be scared of him after this. That was the last thing he wanted though. As he sat there brooding Cas began to stir. He wrinkled his nose as he scented the air.

“Are you ok, Dean? You smell upset.” He sat back and rubbed a hand soothingly down his mate’s arm in an attempt to calm him.

“I-I was afraid you’d be upset with me. That you wouldn’t let me touch you again after that.” Dean’s voice was small, and he was having difficulty meeting the Omega’s concerned gaze.

“Why would I be upset with you? That was the best sex yet. You made me come three times. I didn’t even realize that was humanly possible. It was quite enjoyable.” Cas bared his neck, this time knowing his Alpha wouldn’t resist and a second later Dean was dragging him closer and burying his nose against the scent glands there.

“Three times, huh? I must have missed one.” Dean’s eyes drifted shut as he released a low, rumbling purr that Cas happily returned.

“We should go for four next time,” Cas teased. When Dean looked up he saw the bright, toothy grin on his mate’s face and he laughed.

“I think you’re a sex addict.” 

“The only thing I’m addicted to is you, Dean.” Cas sighed and leaned his head on his mate’s shoulder again. Dean shifted a bit and his now drastically reduced knot popped free.

“Come on, gorgeous. Time for a shower.” He didn’t even give Cas time to respond. He simply stood up with his mate still straddling him, hands clasped under the Omega’s thighs, and carried him to the shower.

It turned out he was able to make Cas come for a fourth time and by the time they were dressed and the plane had landed they were so blissed out Dean had forgotten he’d even been on a plane at all. He placed a couple of calls once they had loaded their bags into the backseat of Gabe’s car and were on the road, heading to Cas’ brother’s house. Cas listened quietly to Dean’s side of the conversation for a bit before pulling his own phone out. Sam had said there were games on it, and he was curious about them. To his surprise there was a message waiting. He opened it.

Gabe: Hey, Dean’s not answering his phone and now neither are you. Can you pass this message along? An officer by the name of Jody Mills called Sam earlier and stopped by a little while later. Forensics is gone from your house now so Sam called in a company to clean it up. They started this afternoon. Tell your mate to call his brother as soon as he can.

“Dean?” Cas asked. Dean had just hung up after his fourth phone call and he glanced over at his mate.

“Yeah?”

“Gabe texted me. He said he and Sam were trying to reach you but you weren’t answering your phone. Jody is done at the house so Sam called in a cleanup crew. They started this afternoon,” Cas replied. Dean frowned.

“I hope he called Forsythe and not Sunshine. I don’t want Becky in my house.”

“Who’s Becky?” Cas asked. Dean sighed and rolled his eyes just thinking about the crazy little blonde.

“Becky’s this off the wall Omega. She’s not mentally stable, even in the slightest. She met my brother at school. She worked in one of the gift shops, and Sam walked in with a couple of his friends one afternoon. One look at my brother and she became obsessed. Ever since she’s been popping up in places where she knows she’ll run into my brother. His favorite coffee shop, the stores he frequents, etc. She tells him that she loves him and that one day they’ll be mates. She creeps both my brother and me out. I heard she started working for Sunshine Cleaning Services a few months back. I’m not sure Sam knows that though.”

“I don’t believe I know anyone clinically insane named Becky that lived in The District.” Cas knew there were two women named Becky but they were both exceptionally sweet.

“No, that’s just it, she’s not in The District, and she hasn’t been diagnosed as insane, but everyone knows she is. Trust me, you wouldn’t forget her if you met her.” Dean shuddered. “Text your brother and ask what cleaning service Sam called.”

Cas texted his brother and a few minutes later Gabe responded. “Forsythe. He says Sam keeps tabs on Becky in his attempt to avoid her. He already knew she’d gone to work for Sunshine.”

Dean’s phone rang and he tapped the Bluetooth speaker in his ear to accept it.

“Hello.”

 

Once they were back at Gabe’s Dean went on alert. He turned his phone off so it wouldn’t distract him as he led Cas inside, his eyes, ears, and nose on red alert but the street was quiet. Gabe met them in the kitchen, helping to grab the bags.

“How was Chicago?” he asked.

“Aside from the only Alpha to ever try to take me as a mate attacking Cas, it was pleasant. Your brother liked Old Navy,” Dean said with a small laugh. Gabe eyed the bags as he set them on the couch.

“I can tell. At least they’ll last for a lifetime. Their clothes last forever, I swear. Now what’s this about Cas getting attacked?” Gabe turned his attention to his brother, who waved him off.

“Dean sensed I was in distress and came running. Almost killed him for touching me.” There was pride in the Omega’s voice that amused him.

“As long as you’re alright then,” Gabe conceded.

“You guys are finally back? Please tell me you bought sweatpants. Gabe has been helping me all day with the stupid button on my jeans. I can’t open them with broken fingers,” Sam complained as he limped into the room. He spotted the bags and headed for them. “Oh, who went to Old Navy?” 

“I did. What do you think?” Cas motioned towards his shirt and jeans. Sam nodded in approval.

“I like those shirts, they’re like the most comfortable things ever.”

Sam spotted the bags from the store they’d gone into for him, letting out a cry of joy when he pulled a pair of sweatpants out. “Thank you!”

“Would you like help getting ready for bed?” Cas asked him. He saw his own brother shoot him a dirty look out of the corner of his eye but chose to ignore it.

“Yes, if you wouldn’t mind.” 

Cas grabbed the rest of Sam’s bags and followed him to the bedroom while Dean made several more phone calls. When he was finished he sighed deeply.

“Did you guys eat yet?”

“I gave Sam some small meals throughout the day to make it possible for him to take pain pills, but he’s a fast healer so he’s already taking way fewer. I could go for some food,” Gabe said.

“Ok, I’ll order from a place I know I can trust if you want to go and pick it up. I’m kind of wary of having anyone come here. We don’t want to endanger you either.” Dean sat down on the couch and began rifling through the bags until he found the blue sweater. He smiled as he held it up.

“Sure, I’ll go get it.” Gabe nodded towards the sweater. “Is that for Cassie?”

“Yeah, I think he’ll look good in it. It’s almost the same shade of blue as his eyes.” Dean carefully folded the sweater and set it on the seat next to him.

“Lucky bastard got our mother’s eyes. Our dad’s eyes were this greenish hazel color. Our brother Mike and sister Hael got mom’s eyes too. The rest of us all got varying shades of hazel.” 

“How many Novak kids are there?” Dean asked as he pulled out his phone again. If he was getting food, he was getting it from Ellen.

“Father mated again after our mom died. Within six months of her death too. His new wife is a terrified little Omega that he beats into submission when she doesn’t do exactly what he says. She’s already pumped out two more and is pregnant with a third. So, like…sixteen?”

Dean’s jaw dropped and he stared hard at Gabe for a minute. “Sixteen?! How does he even afford them all?!”

“He’s rich. Entered into his mating with my mother with a dowry from her parents. In other words they paid him to take her off their hands so she didn’t end up in The District. Too bad my dad doesn’t care if his kids end up there.” Gabe was still bitter over finding out his brother had spent twenty years there. “And of my full siblings, Cas was the only Omega. First one in generations actually. Our dad sold off my sisters, and kicked Cas out. I have a brother named Sam too, short for Samandriel. We call him Alfie. He turned out to be a Beta male but was smart enough to hightail it out before dad could sell him off to the highest paying Alpha, too. I got a hold of him earlier today through Michael, and he said our dad literally took our brother by the back of his shirt and tossed him out the door. Only the younger kids knew, the rest of us had already either moved out by my dad’s order, run away like I did, or was sold off. Cas was expected to be an Alpha, all of us boys were. Cas presenting as an Omega and Alfie as the only Beta was a disgrace to our father. We had three more younger siblings, Rachel, Jonah, and Inias. Rachel turned out to be a Beta and was sold off the year after Cas was kicked out. The boys both proved to be Alphas. Alfie doesn’t talk to our dad anymore, and he has spent years trying to find our missing siblings. He never lost touch with Michael, Bart, or Luke, and I reconnected with Michael about five years ago, so he found me through Mike. We had a nice, long talk this afternoon. I wish Omega and Beta sales were illegal. I’d love to see my dad go to jail for it. I also wish unclaimed Omegas weren’t being forced into The District. I’ve known a few Omegas from there. That place is brutal.” Gabe shook his head before running a hand through his hair.

“I told my brother he should run for a political office. Enact some real change. Omegas need someone in their corner and who better to recruit than one of the wealthiest business owners in the country? A man whose own mate came out of one of those hellish districts. He plans to revitalize The District, did he tell you that?” Sam was limping into the room and with Cas’ help he lowered himself into a rather plush looking recliner in the corner. Gabe perked up at hearing that.

“Really? What are your plans for that?”

They spent the next twenty minutes discussing Dean’s plans until he heard his mate’s stomach rumble, and he was reminded that he needed to order dinner still.

“Honey, I’m ordering from Ellen’s. Gabe’s going to go pick it up. What do you want?” He looked up at his mate, who was perched on the arm of the couch.

“Oh, a double cheeseburger, please, with bacon. It’s not as good as yours but it’s a close second,” Cas replied.

“I know you want your rabbit food, Sammy,” Dean said. He turned his attention to Gabe. “What about you?”

“I’ll have the same as Cassie. I’ll even stop for milkshakes on the way home. Maybe just some soft serve ice cream for Sam. I know his face hurts.” Gabe winked at Sam, who smiled weakly. His jaw was still hurting.

“Ok, give me a minute.” Dean called Ellen and spoke to her directly, catching her up on what was going on before placing the order. He was chastised for not keeping her up to speed on what was going on and made to promise that he would let her know what was happening. When he was done he excused himself to go change.

He had just pulled on a pair of sweatpants when there came a knock at the door.

“Come in.” He expected it to be Cas but instead it was Sam.

“Hey, what exactly happened with Gordon in Chicago? Gabe mentioned that Cas was attacked? Cas won’t talk about it.” Sam closed the door behind him; Dean motioned for him to sit down.

“Gordon’s been trying for years now to convince me to take him as my mate. Like I’d ever take another Alpha,” Dean snorted.

“I thought it was because Gordon’s an asshole,” Sam said dryly.

“That too, but I never had an interest, and I always declined his advances. I couldn’t find him at the shop today. He ended up walking in the front door while I was at the other end of the garage. I guess he caught my scent on Cas, smelled that we were mated and he flipped. Fangs out, snarling, about two seconds from ripping Cas’ jugular out til I tackled the bastard.” Dean didn’t like thinking about it.

“Shit. And Cas is ok?” Sam asked.

“Yeah. Weird thing though, he’s like super horny since we mated. He got turned on at the mall today picturing me in these shirts, and at the garage when I was trying to calm him down, and he literally climbed up me once we got on the plane. I don’t mind, it’s the best sex I’ve ever had, but compared to his normally meek nature? It sort of threw me.” Dean scratched at the back of his neck as he watched his brother’s expression go from surprise to one of puzzlement.

“I’d have to research, but either he’s already pregnant or this has something to do with you being true mates. I’ll look into it and see what I can find. Let me know if he experiences any mood changes, ok? And I’d get him to the doctor for a checkup as soon as possible, make sure he’s healthy and isn’t sick.” Sam grunted as he got up from the bed. “Gabe left, so Cas will be seeking you out any minute, I’m sure. Just keep the noise down?” Sam grinned and Dean flipped him off. Once his brother was gone Dean went in search of his mate. He found him in the kitchen.

“Gabe’s going to bring home milkshakes. I’ve never had a milkshake, I’m excited!” Cas exclaimed as he poured himself a glass of water.

“What flavor did you ask for?” Dean asked.

“I-I didn’t. He just said he was bringing some back. I didn’t think to ask that.” Cas frowned. Such simple things seemed to always prove to be the most difficult.

“Text him and tell him your preference,” Dean said.

“Like chocolate or vanilla?” 

“Or strawberry.” Dean pulled out his phone. “I’m a chocolate man myself, but depending on where he stops there are hundreds more flavors. Do you like Oreos? Peanut butter cups? Butterfingers?”

Cas shook his head. “I know those are the names of candies and other things, but I’ve never tried them.”

“Oreos are cookies, but yeah. Do you like peanut butter? You eat the sandwiches I make you,” Dean asked.

“Oh, yes, very much so,” Cas nodded.

Dean was shooting a text off to Gabe. When his phone vibrated a few minutes later he smiled before shoving it back in his pocket. “You’re getting the good milkshakes tonight, honey. Gabe’s going to stop at Steak n Shake. I told him to get you a peanut butter cup one. I’m getting fudge so if you don’t like yours, we can switch.”

“Ok.” Cas took a sip of his water and cocked his head, listening. “Dean…someone’s outside.”

Dean stiffened and turned towards the hall leading to the front door. Quietly he made his way to the front door and cursed under his breath when he saw the alarm was not set. He punched in the code before pulling the curtain on the door window back and peeking out.

The street outside was quiet for this time of night, but he could sense someone skulking about. No scents were coming under the door, which meant this house was insulated for Omega protection too. Most houses were, though not usually to the same degree his house was. Slowly the feeling dissipated and he turned to walk back to the kitchen. He glanced at the alarm and stopped dead in his tracks.

“What the hell?” The alarm was on standby again. He reset it a second time and stood watching it.

“What are you doing?” Cas asked as he walked over.

“It wasn’t set, so I set it, and after I checked the front yard I looked again and it was off. Maybe it’s a glitch in the system. I’m going to have Gabe call the alarm company when he gets back,” Dean replied. The alarm beeped a few minutes later, and they stepped back to let Gabe in the house.

“Whoa, you guys that hungry?” The Alpha laughed when he saw them standing there.

“Did you set the alarm before you left?” Dean asked.

“Of course, I always do. Force of habit, why?”

“We heard someone outside so I came to check, and the alarm was off. I looked out the window and when I looked back at the alarm it was on standby again. I can’t have it doing that in the middle of the night.” Dean looked at the alarm again and sure enough, it was on standby. “See?” Gabe handed over the large box of food and the container full of milkshakes to Dean and turned to look at the panel.

“Something’s wrong. I’m calling the alarm company now.” He already had his phone out and was dialing. Dean took the food to the kitchen. Cas followed after watching his brother set the alarm again.

“Sam! Food!” Dean called out. He got all the food laid out and figured whose was whose by the time his brother walked in the room. Gabe joined them shortly after.

“They’re sending out a tech right now. I explained it’s urgent,” he said as he sat down at the table.

“What’s urgent?” Sam asked.

“Alarm is turning itself off,” Gabe explained.

“Oh, shit…” Sam frowned and looked at his brother. Dean was contemplative, which meant he was thinking of taking his mate and leaving.

“I think I’m going to call Charlie too. She’s a hacker, and she might know what’s going on,” he finally said.

Cas scooted his chair closer to his mate as he ate his food, though his eyes kept darting to the windows. Gabe drew his attention away when he handed him a large cup and a straw.

“Enjoy, little brother,” he said. When next he handed over a plastic spoon with a long handle Cas looked up in confusion. Dean reached over and took the lid off his cup and plunked the spoon down in it.

“They’re super thick. You’ll hurt yourself if you try to suck it through the straw,” He explained. Cas smiled and nodded before taking a bite.

“Oh! This is delicious!” 

Dean grinned and held out a spoonful of his own for Cas to try.

“That’s delicious too. Are they all this good?” Cas asked.

“No, some flavors are downright gross, but there are some really good ones.” Gabe said. Sam was slowly spooning what looked like a chocolate shake into his mouth. 

“You’ll have to try them and see which ones you do and don’t like,” he told the Omega.

They finished their meals just a few minutes before the tech from the alarm company arrived. Dean had also called Charlie, and she arrived while the tech was doing a check of the external wiring.

 

“So what exactly is going on? Care to fill me in?” She asked the moment she stepped through the door. Her hands were on her hips, and she was looking up expectantly at Dean. He gave her a brief synopsis of what was happening as she opened her laptop and started typing away.

“What is she doing?” Cas asked as he stood next to Dean watching her work.

“Charlie is, among other things, a superb computer hacker. While the tech is outside wandering around like an idiot, she’s actually checking to see if someone has hacked in and is controlling the alarm since it’s connected to computers at the security company,” the Alpha explained.

“Fascinating,” Cas murmured as he sat down next to Charlie. “Do you mind if I ask you some questions?” he asked.

“Ask away, handsome.” She winked at him before turning her attention back to the screen.

As she worked, Cas peppered her with questions about everything she typed, every page she pulled up, about the code on her screen, and every little thing she checked. She didn’t mind though. It was refreshing to find someone interested in learning how she did things, and she enjoyed answering every question. Dean moved to the chair on the other side of her and sat quietly, watching the screen and waiting to see what she came up with. Sam had returned to his room just before the tech arrived but he came back out, surprised to see Charlie there. He joined the others at the table, quietly watching her work and listening to the questions Cas asked. He was impressed by the Omega’s thirst for knowledge.

“Ok, so yes, someone with moderate hacking skills got into the alarm system. Your tech may or may not catch it. I’m guessing there’s a splicer added somewhere outside redirecting the feed to a nearby computer. Someone knows you guys are here. I would change your alarm company, asap, and invest in one that buries their lines, or puts them in your basement, and I would make sure the alarm is run on its own power source like Dean’s is. In fact, I would call his security company and get them to come install their system. It’s virtually unhackable; that’s why I recommended it as a replacement for the one that came with the house.” She looked up at Gabe who was leaning against the island, sucking on a lollipop as he watched her work. He nodded and looked at Dean.

“Do you have their name and number? I can get them out here in the morning, but we still have to deal with tonight.”

“I’ve got that covered. I’ll let the tech guy find the splicer. He’ll remove it, reconnect the cable, and then I’ll remain hacked into your alarm. Whoever is currently tapping in and redirecting, they’re nowhere near as good as I am and they’d have to get through me to gain control again, and that’s not going to happen.” She pushed the laptop back and looked around at the men. “So, got any snacks?”

“I have leftover blueberry muffins from this morning,” Gabe offered.

“Oh, yes!” Charlie clapped her hands together excitedly. “Are they homemade?”

“Yes, ma’am. I own a chain of bakeries, so I’m always baking,” he said as he took muffins out of the toaster oven where he had them stored and set two on a plate for her.

“Oh, if I wasn’t strictly into the V I’d be all over you.” She gave him a cheesy smile that made him laugh.

“I like her,” Gabe said as he carried the plate to the table along with a glass of milk.

“She’s hard not to like.” Dean ruffled her hair, and she pushed his hand away with a laugh.

“So Dean says you’re Cas’ brother?” she asked around a bite of muffin.

“One of many, actually.”

“Interesting. I was an only pup. No siblings. My mother actually was hoping I’d be an Omega, they had a sale all lined up, but ruined that by first, presenting as a Beta, and second, but announcing I am a lesbian. I thought she was going to keel over from the shock,” she snickered. Gabe moved to stand next to his brother, placing a hand on his shoulder and squeezing.

“There are roughly sixteen of us. Omegas get sold off right after they present,” he said.

“I was the only Omega,” Cas said softly. He looked down at his hands, which were folded on the table in front of him. Charlie knew how his story went.

“Your parents are assholes, you know that?” she asked, her tone bitter.

“Yes, they were,” Gabe agreed.

Someone knocked at the door, and Dean got up to answer it. “Who are you?” he asked the petite brunette standing at the door. There was a darkness about her that he really didn’t like. Her scent made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

“I’m looking for Castiel Novak. I know he’s here.” Her voice was deeper than he had expected. Something was off about this entire thing. He took a defensive stance. “Gabe, want to come here, please?” He hoped his tone told his mate and the others to stay put. Gabe came up behind him, already alerted that this woman at his door was an unwelcome stranger by Dean’s scent.

“You’re not welcome here. You need to get off my property,” he said firmly. Gabe was small compared to Dean, but his tone was commanding and he noticed how the woman twitched as she tried not to follow the order.

“Now, now boys, there’s no need to be hostile. Do I look like I could harm two big, strong Alphas like yourselves? I’m just a little old Beta, like the two sitting in your kitchen with Castiel. I really just want to talk to him.” Her tone was flirty but both Alphas could sense danger.

“You’re not talking to my mate, now or ever. Leave, before I make you leave.” Dean snarled. She took a step back but refused to back down entirely.

“Mate? Tsk, tsk, apparently you can’t follow instructions. The Omega whore does not belong to you; he belongs to Alistair. He wanted him pure, untouched.” She sniffed the air and grimaced. “I can smell the sex on you, the slick. You’re going to pay for that.” In the distance they could hear sirens rapidly approaching. “And that’s my cue to leave. We’ll be seeing one another again soon, Dean. I can’t wait to hear you scream.” She skipped down the steps and took off running.

“Don’t.” Gabe grabbed Dean’s arm as he started after her. “I can hold my own, but we don’t know who else Alistair has working for him. If we split up we risk getting attacked.” Dean backed up, returning to the doorway. Two police cars came racing down the street, coming to a screeching halt outside the house. He was relieved to see Jody getting out of one of the cars.

“What happened? Sam called me, said to get down here.” She was looking around, alert for danger as she walked up to the porch.

“I think I just met the woman that was seen leaving my house last night,” Dean said.

“And I videotaped her. She just doesn’t know it.” Gabe smirked and handed over his phone to Jody. She played back the video.

“Oh hell, it’s Ruby Frasier. She’s gotten herself tangled up with the likes of Alistair?” She sighed and forwarded the video to herself before giving Gabe back the phone.

“Should I know that name?” Dean asked. “And how worried should I be? Do I need to take my mate out of the country?”

“Alistair is a lowlife. If he has anyone working for him, they’re lowlifes too. Ruby, she’s a pusher, and she’s been seen in The District helping the pimps with keeping their Omegas in check. When slapping them around and flat out raping them doesn’t get them to be complacent, she pumps them full of heroin. Which way did she go? Was she on foot?”

Gabe pointed in the direction the brunette had run in. “As far as we could see from here, she was on foot.”

“Say, where’s that technician? His truck’s still here but he hasn’t come back up to the house yet.” Dean leaned forward, looking left and right, but there was no sign of the Beta.

“You have a tech here? For what reason?” Jody asked as she descended the steps.

“Someone hacked into the alarm system and was turning it off,” Dean replied.

“Stay here,” she instructed. He and Gabe watched as she sent her men around to the back of the house.

“What’s going on?” Sam asked, startling both of the already jumpy Alphas. Dean turned to look at his brother.

“Alistair sent a lackey. Pretty sure it’s the woman that was seen leaving our house.” Dean pulled his phone out.

“Who are you calling?” Gabe asked.

“Reinforcements,” Dean replied as he went back into the house.

“Officer Mills! We’ve got a body!” someone shouted.

“Oh hell, there goes the value on my house,” Gabe muttered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, I'm so evil. First the smut, and then I temper it with angst. But you know you still love me. ^_^
> 
> Leave me a comment, let me know what you think. You're almost caught up to where I've already written. I'm trying so hard to write so many fics right now. Please have patience with me, I'm trying here! Lol! I hope you liked this chapter.


	14. Good Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tension is high but with Charlie there to control the alarm system, they all settle in for a good night's rest. Cas, however, is under a great deal of stress, and is feeling rather sick. A man is dead and he is blaming himself. It's a terrible burden for the poor Omega to bear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope you like this chapter.

After Gabe called the security company he did business with, Dean took Gabe’s phone and rewatched the video. Something Ruby had said bothered him. He motioned for Gabe to follow him to the back of the house and they went into the laundry room, closing the door behind them.

“What’s on your mind, Dean-o?” Gabe asked.

“Ruby said something that’s bothering me, and Alistair said it too. They both said Cas belongs to Alistair. Is there any chance your father sold your brother to him?” Dean asked. Gabe’s eyes widened.

“No fucking way! Cas was booted when he presented, at thirteen! There’s just no way. Alistair would have had to approach my dad right when my brother presented and offered to buy him. In that case my dad would have arranged to sell Cas off to a more… ‘worthy’ Alpha rather than toss him out on the streets. My dad’s a piece of shit but he doesn’t sell his children to pimps.”

“Is there any chance Alistair laid a verbal claim to Cas once he was in The District?” Dean wondered.

“Well, you filed for guardianship, right? Verbal only lasts for six months before it has to be put in writing and the fee paid to lay the formal claim without having taken him as a mate. If anything was filed before you put your paperwork in, your lawyer would have spoken up about it. Since they didn’t, your claim was the only valid one. And not only did you put it in writing, you sealed the deal when you mated with him. Remember, laws are laws, but like when playing poker, true mate laws trump all others. If anyone doubts you’re true mates, just flash them your red eyes or Cas’ gold ones and they’ll know,” Gabe said.

“How did you know about that?” Dean asked. He certainly hadn’t mentioned it to him.

“Cas mentioned it. Said Sam told him it was a true mate thing. I looked it up after he told me that and sure enough, it’s true. There’s a lot that happens between true mates, it’s one of the reasons they’re so rare. The physical bond, where you feel one another’s anger, joy, fear…it’s like a hundred times stronger. Supposedly the sex drive is way more intense too, and Cas’ fertility rate should be through the freaking roof. With just a mate he’d have to wait til his heat to get pregnant, but with you as his true mate? He’s constantly pumping out eggs, so he can pregnant whenever. And you’ll know when he gets pregnant too. If he gets morning sickness, you’ll feel it. You’ll feel his mood swings, his aches and pains, all of it.” Gabe rattled off a few more facts that left Dean feeling rather numb with shock.

“Yeah, we’re sort of experiencing some of that now. He’s like…always horny, ever since we first mated. He went from being so demure and shy to being a needy mess. Not that I mind, but it shocked me at first.”

Gabe grimaced and smacked his lips together as though he had a bad taste in his mouth.

“Yeah…I don’t really want to hear about my brother being horny, thank you.”

“You brought the topic up,” Dean reminded him, a wicked smirk on his lips.

“I’m sorry I did,” Gabe said dryly.

“I’m going to make a few calls and see how the prospects are looking for a rental house that meets my specifications. If I can’t find one that does, I’ll just buy a house and leave it to Sam when I take Cas back home,” Dean sighed.

“I told you guys, you’re more than welcome to stay here as long as you need. I’m calling the company that did your alarm system, and I overheard your call earlier. Hired thugs? Really?” Gabe quirked an eyebrow and Dean rolled his eyes.

“Not hired thugs. Body guards. Former Marines, retired CIA, NSA, guys that will protect my mate, no matter what.”

“I get it. He’s your everything and you want to keep him safe. It’s actually a good idea,” Gabe conceded.

Someone knocked on the door. “Dean? Are you in there?” It was Cas.

“Yes, sweetheart, did you need me for something?” he asked.

“I-I need you.” The Omega’s voice was small and clearly he didn’t like admitting that he needed Dean, but it was enough to get his Alpha in motion. Dean opened the door and Cas smiled shyly up at him.

“Are you alright?” Dean asked as he ran his fingers through his mate’s hair. Cas sighed, leaning into his touch.

“I’m a little nervous, if I must be honest. The police are still outside, and I heard someone say the technician is dead. Is that true?” He opened those blue eyes of his, the ones that seemed capable of looking into the very depths of Dean’s soul and rendering him incapable of lying to the man.

“Yes, unfortunately. Either Ruby or Alistair killed him,” he admitted. 

“Oh, that poor man…” Cas looked on the verge of tears. Dean glanced back at Gabe, who motioned for him to take his mate to their room, so he did.

“Dean, what are we going to do? I fear he will never stop! How many people is he going to hurt? How many will he kill to get at me? Oh…I don’t feel very well.” Dean had guided Cas to the edge of the bed, gently urging him to sit down but now the Omega was holding his stomach and looking more than a little green around the gills. Dean went to the door and called down the hall to Gabe.

“Gabe, do you have any ginger? Can you make some tea for Cas please?” he asked.

“You got it!” Gabe called back from the kitchen. Dean closed the door and went to his mate, kneeling in front of him.

“Do you think you might throw up?” he asked. 

“I don’t know. It feels like I might,” Cas admitted as he covered his mouth with one hand. Dean stood up and scooped his mate up into his arms before crawling into the bed and cradling him in his arms. Cas buried his nose against Dean’s neck and felt the nausea slowly begin to dissipate. A few minutes later there was a knock at the door.

“Come in,” Dean called out. The door opened, and Charlie walked in with a tray that contained a little silver tea pot and a steaming cup of tea.

“His tea.” She set the tray on the dresser and brought the cup over to the bed. Cas accepted it with a grateful smile.

“Thank you,” he told her.

“Of course, sweetie. How are you feeling? You look a little pale. Smell a little off too,” she said. He blinked at her before looking up at Dean.

“Do I smell sick?” he asked. Dean leaned down, sniffing lightly at first along the edge of the mating mark before burying his nose in the crook of his Omega’s neck and breathing deeply.

“Oh shit!” He gasped as he sat back up.

“What?” Cas asked, clearly frightened by his reaction. His hands began to tremble and tea sloshed out of the cup and splattered on his leg. “Ow!” he cried. Charlie leaned over to take the cup back and set it on the nightstand.

“What do you smell?” she asked Dean.

“Smells like…I’m not exactly sure because it’s so faint, but…cupcakes? Frosting? Strawberry maybe? It’s sweet, whatever it is,” he replied. Her eyes widened as she grinned.

“Oh my God!”

Cas was just now catching on. “Are you sure? I shouldn’t be sick now, though!”

“I think that’s just your nerves. You’re worrying, and it made you sick. Catching this scent? That was a fluke. But it’s there.” Dean pulled Cas closer and this time pulled back the collar of the Omega’s shirt so he could run his nose along the tender skin, from neck to shoulder. It smelled like strawberry cupcakes, he was certain. “Mmmm, you smell so good…,” he purred. Cas laughed and looked up at Charlie, the shock and joy he felt in that moment warring with each other.

“Hey Sam! Gabe! Come here!” Dean yelled when he finally pulled back. Gabe appeared first and Sam limped in a minute later. Sam looked infinitely better than he had even twelve hours earlier. Another day or two and he’d be healed. Thank God for fast healing!

“What?” Sam asked. Gabe leaned in the doorway and nodded in agreement.

“Looks like we’re going to have another Winchester in a few months,” Dean announced proudly. Both Gabe and Sam looked completely shell shocked.

“Wait, what?!” Sam lumbered over to the bed and carefully sat down next to Charlie. “You’re pregnant, Cas?” He could smell something different, something slightly sweet, and maybe a bit fruity. Cas blushed and lowered his head back to Dean’s shoulder, peeking out from under his thick, dark lashes.

“I don’t feel it yet, but Dean and Charlie say they can smell it on me,” he said softly.

“I can smell it too,” Sam agreed. He looked up at Gabe who still stood in the doorway, his jaw still dropped. Suddenly the Alpha shut his mouth and hurried over to the bed. He came around the other side, so he could be closer to his brother and sniffed the air around him. Yep, in the last few hours his scent had definitely changed, it was sweeter. Smelled a bit like his bakery actually.

“Is this cause we’re true mates?” Dean directed the question at his brother.

Sam shrugged and grimaced at the pain that caused. “I’ll have to check. If I had to take a guess though, I’d say yes. It’s usually about two weeks into a pregnancy before there’s a scent change, sometimes sooner if it’s multiples…” His eyes widened at the same time Dean’s did.

“What?!”

“Oh…” Sam looked at Charlie who also mirrored his look of shock, and then at Gabe who actually looked amused.

“Wouldn’t surprise me. Multiples run in our family. Our parents had three sets. And our mom’s a triplet. Her parents were true mates, now that I think about it,” he said. Cas was sitting up again and had turned so that his back was leaning against Dean’s chest. Dean’s arms were around him, his hands resting over the Omega’s belly. Cas could already smell the defensiveness in his mate. Soon Dean would be ready to rip out the throat of anyone Cas deemed a threat to their pup. Or pups. He tilted his head back to gaze up at his mate and let out a soft purr. Dean started, surprised by the sound. He smiled and kissed Cas gently on the forehead.

“Well I don’t care if I have one or ten in there. I need to keep everyone safe, and that needs to happen now. We’ll stay here, Gabe, if that’s ok, but I need to get my computer from the house, and a few other things. I won’t be going in to work until Alistair is dead or locked away for the rest of his life, same goes for Ruby. I need to make some calls, get the cleanup and repairs done on our house so we can go home as soon as possible,” Dean said as he dug his phone out of his pocket.

“I don’t feel well again.” Cas frowned, and Charlie handed him back the cup of tea. He sipped at it, sighing with relief when his stomach finally began to calm down.

“Well, I have some calls to make as well,” Gabe announced.

“I suppose I should call Jess. She’s probably wondering what the hell happened to me.” Sam sighed as he got up from the bed. He noticed how Gabe’s eyes darkened at the mention of Jess’ name, but he ignored it. Gabe was nice but Jess was his girlfriend. She was a Beta like him. She was safe. Alphas, save for Dean, brought trouble. He left the room with Charlie on his heels. Gabe watched them leave before slowly heading for the door. He looked back at his brother and Dean before he closed the door.

“I’ve already called the alarm company. They’ll be out here in the morning. I’ll be up tonight watching the alarm. Charlie’s staying the night, by the way, she has overridden the alarm and will be monitoring it too. If you need anything at all, you come get me.” 

Dean nodded and Cas offered a small smile before Gabe left, closing the door behind him. As soon as they were alone Cas put the empty tea cup on the nightstand and turned around to face Dean. He pushed the Alpha’s legs apart and scooted closer, wrapping his arms around his mate’s waist and snuggling in as close as he could get. He listened as Dean made phone call after phone call, marveling at how the Alpha could command others so firmly that they bent to his whim with nary an argument from those he was giving orders to, but he was nothing but gentle and loving with his Omega.

When Dean finally hung up the phone the house was going to be ready to move back into in a week’s time, he’d arranged for a security detail so Cas could return to work safely, an appointment was arranged, despite the late hour, with an obstetrician Dean knew and trusted, and had covered all the work for the local shop for the next two weeks. He left, returning with Sam’s laptop, and settled back in the bed again.

“What are you planning to do?” Cas asked, curious when Dean loaded up a pink page full of cartoon babies.

“I’m looking at furniture,” Dean murmured as he typed in the search bar.

“So soon?” Cas asked.

“I like to plan ahead. Your old room can be the nursery. How does that sound?” Dean looked up as Cas nestled in against his side and leaned his head on his mate’s chest so he could see the screen.

“I like that, but with sound proofed walls how will we hear them if they cry?” That worried Cas. A lot. 

“The pup can stay with us in our room for the first few months. Then when they’re sleeping through the night we can move them into the nursery, and we’ll get monitors so we can hear them and install cameras so you can see them wherever you are in the house.” Dean ran his fingers through his Omega’s hair as he talked. Cas found it soothing and purred in contentment. It pleased Dean knowing he could bring his mate this kind of peace in spite of what they were currently dealing with. A knock at the door made both men look up.

“Yeah?” Dean asked. The door opened and Charlie stuck her head in.

“Jody says she’s leaving a car here tonight. Ruby was spotted still in the area, so she’s not leaving the house unguarded until your security arrives in the morning,” she said. Dean nodded, frowning slightly when his mate whined and snuggled closer. 

“Thanks. Anything changes, let me know,” Dean told her. She nodded and left, closing the door behind her.

“It’s alright baby, I promise.” Dean went back to running his fingers through Cas’ hair, but the Omega wasn’t purring anymore. Instead he was scrolling down the page, looking at the cribs and dressers, changing tables and swings, not uttering a single word.

“How does a movie sound, honey?” Dean asked softly. Cas lifted his head to look up at him.

“How? There’s not a TV in here. Are we joining Charlie in the living room?”

“No, we can watch it right here, on the laptop.” Dean closed out the store’s tab and pulled up Netflix. “What are you in the mood for?”

“Something funny. I don’t think I could handle anything scary right now,” Cas said, his voice barely above a whisper. Dean kissed his mate’s head before searching through the comedies. He decided maybe a romantic comedy might ease Cas’ worries. He’d never admit that he liked RomComs too. Settling on “27 Dresses,” they relaxed and got involved in the movie plot.

“Is she a Beta? She has so many friends,” Cas asked wistfully as they watched the main character rushing from wedding to wedding.

“I believe that is what her character is portraying, yes,” Dean replied.

“Do Sam and Charlie have a lot of friends?”

“I suppose they do. You will too, honey, once you get out more and start meeting people. Charlie and Sam are already your friends, and you have your friend Meg at the school. Soon you’ll have more friends than you’ll know what to do with,” Dean promised as he kissed the Omega’s temple softly.

“I don’t think I want that many friends. I like Sam, and I like Charlie. Maybe a few more would be nice, but I don’t think I would want to run around to twenty seven different weddings. One or two, maybe, but this is illogical and she must be exhausted.” Cas said as he shook his head. Dean chuckled.

“Honey, it’s a movie. It’s meant to be funny. I doubt anyone really attends this many weddings in a single year.”

“Oh.” Cas was quiet for a little while longer before adding “Then I suppose I see the humor. I am happy that she met the Alpha and that they are falling in love.”

They finished the movie, and Cas left to go to the bathroom. When he returned he stripped down to his boxer briefs and tee shirt, pausing to look down at his still flat stomach. It was mind blowing to think that there was a tiny life growing inside there. Or perhaps more than one. 

“Dean?”

Dean had already stripped down and was busy folding their dirty clothes and setting them on the dresser to be washed when he heard his name.

“Yeah?”

“I believe I will need different clothing in the next few months. These…” He thumbed the waistband of his underwear. “Will not be comfortable once I really start to show.”

“It’s alright. We’ll go shopping and pick up anything you want and anything you think you will need.” Dean returned to the bed and pulled the covers back.

“Should I make a list? I don’t really know what we’ll need beyond the essentials. I-I want to nurse. Will that be alright?” Cas asked. Some Alphas had issues with an Omega nursing. They couldn’t mate during that time because to get pregnant again that soon would mean milk would get cut off.

“Of course, why wouldn’t it be?” 

“Because if I got pregnant while nursing, it would cut off my milk,” Cas replied.

“Well, for starters, you’ll be healing the first month. I know you’ll heal quickly, but I’m still not pushing the matter. After you’re healed, we’ll use protection. I would love more pups but really, babe, I want to enjoy the first one before we bring more into this world,” Dean told him. “I’m going to take a look at the alarm system for my own peace of mind and then go brush my teeth. I’ll be back in a little bit, ok?”

Cas smiled and nodded as he laid down in the bed and pulled the covers over himself. He grabbed his phone, still wanting to find those games Sam had talked about.

Dean stopped in the living room where Gabe, Sam, and Charlie were all sitting and talking.

“Cassie alright?” Gabe asked.

“Yeah, he’s settled in bed. I just came to check on the alarm for my own peace of mind,” Dean replied. He walked over to the door, feeling himself relax marginally when he saw the green light that indicated the alarm was on.

“No one’s getting past me, Daddy-o,” Charlie said. Dean smirked at the nickname.

“You made the appointment for tomorrow?” Sam asked. Dean nodded.

“Yeah, got him in to see Evelyn Sanders. She specializes in Omega pregnancies, but she is an activist, rallies on their behalf, so I trust her to treat Cas with respect while taking good care of him and our pup. I called her house, that’s why I got him in so soon. She wanted to see him sooner rather than later after I explained that he’d come out of The District. So he’s getting a full exam, blood work, and getting a pelvic exam, or at least that’s what she told me she had planned.”

“Good, he deserves the equal treatment,” Sam said.

“He’s the sweetest damn Omega I think I’ve ever met. I really like him.” Charlie looked up at Dean and smiled. “He’s perfect for you, but you’re perfect for him too. Don’t forget to let him take care of you in return.”

“I know. He already does wonders for keeping my anger in check. And he makes me think before I act,” Dean admitted.

“Good, you needed that. No offense, but you occasionally fly off the handle, especially when one of the shops pisses you off,” Charlie said. 

“I know. On the plus side, the shop that got under my skin the most is about to have new management. Gordon was let out on bail, but I filed charges of assault and a threat against a true mate claim, so he’ll be doing some time. Plus I fired him.” 

“Good. I never liked him.” Charlie shuddered just thinking of her last interaction with Gordon.

“I need you to arrange for Benny to go up and train Dennis to take over. I want Benny to make it clear that under no circumstances is he to continue running the place the way Gordon was. Maybe you can go with,” Dean said. Charlie nodded.

“I’ll call Benny in the morning and let him know, then I’ll arrange for our flight.”

Dean started for the hall again. “If anything at all happens, come get me. Do not be afraid to wake me up.”

“Will do. Sleep well, Dean,” Gabe said.

 

Dean stopped in the bathroom to pee and brush his teeth. When he returned to the bedroom Cas was sitting up in bed with his phone, the music of some game playing softly.

“I see you found one of the games. You can download more if you want,” he said as he shut the door and locked it. Cas looked up at him, a puzzled look on his face.

“What do you mean I can download more? More games?”

“Yeah, there are thousands of game apps,” Dean replied as he climbed into the bed. He held up an arm and Cas snuggled against his side.

“And where do I find these games? Do I go buy them at a store or something?” Cas asked.

“There are free ones, and there are ones you have to pay for. Why don’t you enjoy that one for now, and tomorrow I’ll download a few more. You can put them on right from the internet, but we’ll work on teaching you all of that later,” Dean replied.

“Alright. I quite like this one, it’s a puzzle. I figured out that I have to fulfill the required number of combinations before I can move on to the next level. I’m not sure there is an end to this game, only that I must complete each new level in order to advance. I still find the game enjoyable. I like the shiny little gems,” Cas murmured as he found another combination and obliterated three diamonds. Dean smiled, happy to see his mate content, even if it was just with a simple game. He settled back against the pillows and, after setting an alarm, closed his eyes. It had been a long day, and he was tired. It wasn’t long before he drifted off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So....yep! Cas is with pup! Do your little happy dance for now because if you all know me, you know the roller coaster's about to peak...
> 
> Leave a comment, let me know what you think.


	15. Protected

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's just supposed to be a simple doctor's visit, but things are most definitely not in Dean's favor this morning, especially when he gets a text from Jo. Someone broke into The Roadhouse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, have some mood swings and angst. I love you all! Enjoy!

The next morning came sooner than Dean wanted, and he groaned in frustration when the alarm went off. Cas was wrapped around him, making it hard for him to reach his phone and shut the alarm off. 

“Cas, honey, wake up. We have to get ready to go to the doctor.” He shook his mate gently, and when Cas lifted his head he looked disoriented.

“What day is this?”

“Thursday. We have to get ready for the doctor’s office. Why don’t you go shower and get dressed, and I’ll go make some breakfast, ok?” Dean brushed a lock of dark hair off his mate’s forehead, smiling when Cas grumbled.

“I want something sweet.”

“Pancakes sound good?” Dean asked.

“Yes, and fruit. I want fruit.” Cas forced himself to sit up, yawning as he did so. Dean got up from the bed and stretched, feeling his back pop in the process.

“I’ll see what I can do for fruit.” He pulled some jeans on and changed into a clean tee shirt before padding barefoot out to the living room. Charlie was sprawled across the couch, one arm dangling off the edge, the laptop perched on her chest. Gabe was curled up on the loveseat in the corner, still sound asleep. After checking the alarm and making sure it was still on, Dean headed into the kitchen. He located the ingredients to whip up a fresh batch of pancakes before finding bacon in the fridge. As he cooked he hummed softly. As he was pulling the second batch of pancakes out of the pan, Gabe walked in.

“Smells good. I can help, it’ll go faster. We have a lot of mouths to feed,” he mumbled as he started a pot of coffee.

“Thanks. Say, Cas wants fruit. He didn’t say what kind though. What do you have?” Dean asked.

“How about I make him a fruit salad? I have some bananas over on the counter, and blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries in the fridge,” Gabe said. Dean shrugged.

“Sounds good to me.”

Gabe nodded and pulled out the fruit, busying himself with tossing it all together and slicing the bananas into it. When a freshly showered Cas walked into the kitchen, his nostrils flared at the buttery smell of the pancakes mixed with the scent of bacon.

“Mmmm, that smells like heaven! I’m so hungry.” 

“Here, this is what I had for fruit, I hope it hits the spot.” Gabe pushed a rather large bowl of the berries and bananas towards his brother.

“Do you have a smaller bowl? I don’t think I can eat all of this.” Cas plucked a blueberry out of the bowl and popped it in his mouth. He groaned as it popped on his tongue as he chewed. “Can we add a little honey or sugar?”

Dean turned to look at his mate, one eyebrow cocked. “You want to sweeten the fruit?”

“I do. Just a little.” Cas accepted the new bowl Gabe offered and spooned some of the fruit into it. Gabe held out a bottle of honey and Cas poured a little over the fruit. His first bite made him groan, it tasted so delicious.

“Looks like someone is having his first cravings.” Gabe grinned and his brother smiled back.

“I was dreaming about fruit, wanted to eat it so bad that it was all I could think about when I woke up,” Cas told him.

“Well, if fruit is what you crave throughout this pregnancy, I’m not going to complain,” Dean said with a laugh as he plated another batch of pancakes. 

Charlie and Sam woke up, and they all sat around the kitchen table to eat. Halfway through the meal, the doorbell rang.

“That the guys?” Charlie asked. A second later Dean’s phone chimed with a text notification. He pulled it out to look.

Felix: Security staff has arrived, sir

“Yep, that’s them. Excuse me.” Dean got up and went to the door, peeking out first before opening it. He spotted two of his security staff standing there. Opening the door, they both turned to face him. He had specifically requested Alan as they were old friends, and seeing the man standing here before him was almost a relief.

“Hey, Dean.” The taller of the two men greeted him.

“Alan. Was the drive down here alright?” Dean asked as he let the men in. He hurried to silence the alarm.

“It was quick and smooth. We encountered no traffic at this early of an hour,” Alan replied.

“Where are the rest of the guys?” Dean asked as he motioned for them to follow him to the kitchen.

“I sent two over to your home to oversee the repairs that are being made; I posted two outside of this house, and two down at the shop here in town. I also sent a technician in to fetch your computer after they make sure it was not tampered with. I should know within the next few minutes if it was.” Alan ticked off everything as Dean listened. When they stepped into the kitchen Dean motioned towards the people at the table.

“My pack. This is my mate, Cas, his brother Gabe, you already know my brother, Sam, and Charlie.” Dean pointed each person out. Alan folded his hands in front of himself and nodded politely.

“Good morning, everyone.”

“Hey, Alan,” Sam nodded back. Charlie smiled and waved. Cas looked up at Dean with wide eyes.

“Is it time to leave?”

“Not yet. Finish eating.” Dean kissed the top of his mate’s head before grabbing his plate and motioning for the two security guards to follow him. “I have to talk to Alan, but we’ll just be in the other room.” Cas nodded before turning his attention back to his food.

“How are you feeling this morning?” Sam directed the question to Cas.

“Tired, I was up for a while after Dean fell asleep playing that gem game on my phone. It was fun.” Cas snickered before popping a honey covered strawberry in his mouth.

“There are so many games you can download. I picked up the phone for Dean so I know it’s the highest memory one you can buy, plus you can expand the memory. If you like games I can help you find a ton more that will keep you entertained,” Charlie told him. 

“Dean said something about downloading last night. What exactly is that?” Cas asked.

“It’s easier to show you. Finish your food, and I’ll walk you through the Google Play Store,” she said.

Gabe got up, putting his empty plate in the sink and putting on a pot of water to boil before returning to the table to sit back down. He made a point of ignoring Sam, and the Beta was definitely aware of it. 

“Gabe?”

Amber eyes flickered over to the man. “Yes, Sam?”

“Could I get some help with reapplying these bandages?” Sam held out his hands where his broken fingers were splinted. They were almost healed. Another day or two and the splints could be removed.

Gabe looked at his hands for a moment, and Sam could see the emotions warring there. He was trying to resist his instincts to care for the Beta, to resist his attraction and desire to win him over. Sam set his hands down on the table.

“It’s alright, I’ll just leave them.”

“No, I’ll change them,” Gabe sighed, upset with himself for losing his internal debate. He got up, leaving to go get what he needed.

“What are you doing, Sam?” Charlie asked.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“You just asked an Alpha, one that is not Dean, to help take care of you. What are you doing?” 

Sam glanced over at Cas who was looking between the two of them with large eyes, but he was staying quiet.

“He’s been helping me,” Sam replied lamely.

Charlie glared at him for a moment, but then Gabe was walking back in. “We’re not done, Sam.”

The water on the stove came to a boil, so Gabe deposited the gauze and first aid kit on the table before preparing a cup of ginger tea and carrying it back to the table. He set it down it front of Cas, who looked up in surprise.

“Oh, thank you.”

“You feel good now that you’ve eaten, but morning sickness can have you tossing your cookies at the most inopportune times. Best to keep your stomach calm to give your food time to digest,” Gabe explained. Cas smiled at his brother.

“Thank you for that.”

Gabe turned his attention to Sam, who eagerly held out his hands. He smirked at the Beta before he began carefully unwrapping the gauze. Sam was warring with his own feelings as Gabe carefully unwrapped his fingers and checked the joints for swelling. He was so careful and thoughtful, and it left Sam confused. His girlfriend, as sweet as she had always been, was not attentive like this. She was independent, did her own thing, and it had hurt him when he’d called her last night to let her know what had happened, and she had admitted that she hadn’t realized he hadn’t called in a few days. He wanted someone in his life who really truly cared. 

And he genuinely liked being taken care of. 

Gabe carefully rewrapped his fingers, one by one, his own fingers stroking lightly over Sam’s knuckles as he taped the new gauze in place.

“Thank you,” Sam said. Gabe offered a small smile.

“You’re welcome. I’m going to get started on the dishes.” He got up, gathering the remaining plates on the table and carrying them to the sink.

“You, now,” Charlie hissed, pointing at Sam. Dean walked in the kitchen just as his brother and Charlie walked out.

“What’s their problem?” he asked. Cas glanced over at Gabe before looking at his mate and shaking his head.

“Oh, well…you ready to go, sweetheart? Appointment is in an hour.” 

Cas frowned and picked up his cup of tea. His stomach was slightly queasy, though that had more to do with the idea of his first real doctor visit since he was a child. The generic checkups that were required every year by the school were simply a taking his vitals and listening to his breathing. This was liable to be more invasive, and he was not looking forward to it. He finished off the tea.

“Fine,” he grumbled as he stood up. He marched past Dean and out of the kitchen. Dean was left standing there wondering what had just happened. Gabe snickered, drawing his attention.

“What’s so funny?”

“Mood swings are already starting. Word of advice? Do not deliberately try to rile him while he’s a hormonal mess,” Gabe said.

“He’s right. Pregnant Omegas can be pretty scary.” 

Dean turned to see that Alan had walked in the room.

“I don’t plan to rile him. All I asked was if he was ready to go.”

“To the first real doctor’s appointment he’s had in decades. He’s anticipating the worst. I’d talk to him, explain the types of things the doctor will be doing and why. He’s scared, it’s your job to soothe him,” Gabe said.

“Be patient and don’t let your frustrations take hold, like, at all,” Alan added. Gabe nodded in agreement.

“He’s right. No matter how ticked you might get over the next few months, learn to let things slide.” Dean frowned as he looked between the two men.

“You’re both worrying me.”

“Nah, we’re giving you friendly advice. Enjoy your mate and the time you have left before your pup is here. It’s the quietest it’s going to be for the next eighteen years.” Alan patted Dean on the back before walking out of the room.

“I’m looking forward to being a father. I’m excited about my pup,” Dean insisted.

“Of course you are, you’re a good, responsible Alpha. Just dote on him when he asks for it and back off when he doesn’t and you’ll be fine,” Gabe said. Cas walked back in carrying the blue sweater Dean had bought him. He reached out, taking the Alpha’s hand.

“I’m ready now.”

“Alright, baby, let’s get going.” Dean gave his hand a squeeze as they headed for the garage. He just wanted his mate to be safe and healthy. This trip would hopefully prove that he’d been caring well for his mate since he’d taken him home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alan drove the Hummer and Dean sat in the backseat with Cas curled up against him. Cas smelled calm but there was an underlying nervousness that Dean was picking up on, and that was besides the fact that his mate smelled somewhat horny again. If Alan noticed though, he wasn’t saying anything.

The drive to the doctor’s office was brief and as they headed inside Dean spoke softly to his mate, giving him a rundown of what the exam would consist of, promising to stay by his side if he wanted him to. He checked in with the receptionist and led his mate to the seating area where they sat down together. Alan sat down across from them, his eyes alert and trained to watch everything going on around him. Cas leaned into Dean, sighing as he pulled his phone out to play his game again.

“Dean?”

He froze. No. Freaking. Way. Cas froze too.

“Cassie, uh…hey,” Dean said awkwardly.

“Your…mate…it’s his appointment at nine?” She had a chart in her hand and was reviewing it.

“Yes, it is.” He looked over at Cas. The Omega’s expression was neutral; however, Dean could feel a mixture of emotions rolling off the man in waves. He was _pissed_. Cas sat up straight in his seat and when Dean reached for his hand he pulled it away.

“Is it my turn?” He asked her.

“Cas…” Dean tried again to touch his mate and got a warning growl in response. He was startled by it and dropped his hand back to his lap.

“I’ll take you back now and get your weight and general info.” She glanced at Dean before focusing on Cas again. “Is your, uh, mate coming?”

“No, I’ll do this _alone_.” Cas stood up, pocketing his phone as he followed her down a hall and out of sight.

“What the hell did you do?” Alan asked with a laugh.

Dean slid down in his seat and scrubbed a hand down his face in frustration. “Fuck! I didn’t know she worked here!”

“Is that an ex-girlfriend?” Alan asked.

“No, she’s the Beta I was on a date with the night I met Cas. He ran because he thought she and I were mates. I had to go looking for him and explain.” Dean groaned in frustration when he felt something new spiking between his bond with Cas: jealousy.

“I need to be back there with him, my mate needs me.” He sat up straight and looked down the hall.

“Dean, you need to sit tight. If you go storming in there now, you’ll make it worse, trust me on that one. I have six pups, and it was hardest when my mate was pregnant with our first one. I pissed her off at every turn and got in her face when I really needed to back off. Do you see this?” Alan slid back the cuff on his sleeve so Dean could see the puckered scar on his wrist.

“What is that?” Dean asked.

“I pissed her off once when she was feeling much the way your mate is feeling right now, and she took a chunk out of me. Let him calm down. You might have some kissing up and explaining to do later, but let him calm down first.” Alan slid the cuff back in place. Dean’s phone chimed with a notification, and he pulled it out to see he had a text.

Jo: Mom needs you to call her ASAP. RH was broken into and trashed last night.

Dean felt the fear blossoming in his chest as he quickly dialed his aunt’s number. Ellen picked up on the third ring.

“Dean? Oh, honey, I’m so glad you called!”

“What the hell happened?” he demanded.

“Last night we were broken into. From the terrible musk left behind, it was an Alpha, and a very angry one at that. It was after we’d closed up for the night. The place is completely trashed. They came upstairs to my apartment and tried beating down my door,” she told him.

His fear became tempered with anger. “They didn’t get in, did they? The doors I had installed, they held?”

“We’re fine, sweetheart, but they left a message, for you,” she replied.

“What kind of message?” He looked over at Alan who was watching him intently.

“It was written in…blood…across the mirror behind the bar. I’m going to hang up and send you a picture.”

“Ok.” 

They said their goodbyes, and he promised he’d check in with her later. A minute later his phone buzzed with a text and he opened it. The terror he felt in that moment was worse than anything he had ever felt before. Suddenly a door somewhere down the hall slammed open and Cas was screaming his name.

“Cas!” He dropped the phone, forgetting all about his aunt as he and Alan tore down the hall, meeting Cas halfway. The panic showed in his eyes as he spotted Dean and ran to him, the exam gown he wore flapping behind him as he flung himself at his Alpha.

“What, baby? What’s the matter?” Dean caught the terrified Omega in his arms and held the trembling man tight.

“I need to ask _you_ that! You scared me half to death; I felt it come through the bond! What happened?!” Cas begged. Alan lowered his gun, but he was still on guard.

“What did happen, Dean? Something’s seriously wrong,” he said.

“Go look at my phone. Call in more men immediately. Get no less than two over to my aunt’s bar right now,” Dean ordered. Alan nodded once before he turned and headed back down the hall to the waiting room. Dean looked over to see Cassie standing in the doorway, a concerned look on her face.

“Is everything alright?” she asked.

“No, but it will be.” Dean ran his fingers through his mate’s hair as he forced himself to calm down so that his Omega would relax too.

“What _happened_?” Cas tugged on the front of Dean’s flannel, begging again to know what had happened.

“Alistair. He broke into the Roadhouse last night, trashed the place, and then tried to break into my aunt’s apartment upstairs.” Dean didn’t want to lie to his mate.

“Oh! Are they ok? Please tell me they’re ok!” 

“Shh, they’re fine. I had reinforced doors added a few years back after Jo had a suitor that wouldn’t take no for an answer. No one got in, and they were perfectly safe. They called the police and Alistair left.” Dean pulled his mate back towards the exam room where Cassie was. “Let’s get your visit here over with. We can go and see them in person if it will make you feel better.” 

“Yes. Please, don’t leave me. I’m sorry about before.” Cas wrapped his arms around his Alpha’s waist and laid his head on the man’s shoulder.

“It’s ok, honey.” Dean looked up at Cassie, who was sitting at a desk in the corner jotting things down on a medical record form.

“My part is done. The doctor will be in here shortly.” She stood up and approached them slowly. “I’m really happy for you both and I hope that whatever is going on with your family, that it all works out in the end.”

With that she left the room, dropping the chart in the slot on the door before she shut it. Dean guided Cas over to the chairs in the corner and they say down together.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know why I got so upset. Cassie is lovely and very non-threatening. I just…” Cas sniffled and buried his face against his mate’s neck, inhaling his scent, trying to calm himself.

“I get it. I really had no clue she worked here. We didn’t get far enough into our conversation that night for me to learn that she was a nurse. Doctor Sanders? She’s a close friend of the family and an Omega activist, so I trust her. That’s why I brought you here. I knew you’d be treated with respect, and honey, that is what I demand from the world, for you to be treated with the utmost respect.”

The door opened and a woman with caramel skin and a warm, friendly smile walked in. Her salt and pepper hair was pulled up in a neat bun. She smiled wider when she spotted Dean.

“Hi, honey, how are you?” she asked as she closed the door behind her and walked over the desk in the corner and sat down with Cas’ chart.

“I’ve been better, but right now, doing good,” he replied. She looked up, the concern she felt etched across her features.

“What happened?”

“Long story, but there’s someone threatening my claim. We’ll get it taken care of,” Dean replied.

“But you’re both alright?” She slid across the floor on the little stool, coming to a stop in front of Cas. “Hi, sweetheart. How are you feeling?”

“Um, a little nauseous at the moment. I need some more ginger tea,” he admitted. She nodded.

“You’re true mates, right?” 

Cas and Dean both nodded. 

“Ok, so we’re going to put genetics aside since it’s much like playing poker. Genetics win in most cases, but a true mate bond trumps all. So, when did you first mate? How many weeks ago?” she asked.

“Uh…three…days ago,” Dean replied. She looked up in surprise.

“Well then. Ok, can I get you up here, honey? I want to do a complete exam. Your weight to height ratio tells me you’re a little thin, but if I know Dean, he’s been feeding you well. How long have you been with him? Did you mate the same day?” She asked as Cas got up from the chair and climbed up onto the exam table. He looked to Dean who motioned for him to answer the doctor’s questions.

“N-no, I…wasn’t experienced when Dean and I first met. I was scared, so we waited. There was a challenge to his claim that triggered my heat, and I wanted to wait until that was over before we m-mated,” Cas told her. She had slid back over to the desk to grab his chart and now she was sitting in front of him, jotting down everything he was telling her.

“Well, it’s good that you chose to wait until after your heat or we’d be looking at a possible half dozen pups in there. I’m sure that’s more than either of you could handle for your first time,” she said with a small laugh. Cas’ eyes were huge.

“Six?! Oh my God!”

Dean felt his mate’s heartbeat increase and he jumped up, reaching out to wrap his mate in his arms.

“Shh, calm down, Evelyn will give us all the information we need.” 

Cas took a deep breath and nodded. “A-alright.”

Evelyn chuckled and set the chart on her stool as she stood up. She motioned for Dean to step back, and he sat back down to watch her complete the exam. She started with a basic exam, checking his vitals, listening to his lungs and bowels, testing his eyes, his hearing, and looking in his mouth.

“Overall, you look very healthy. I’m going to draw some blood, make sure you’re not anemic. We’ll draw blood on your next visit, too. Pregnancy can cause low iron issues, and I want that addressed immediately if that happens. Also, we’ll be testing your blood sugar. Did you eat this morning?” she asked.

“Yes. Dean made pancakes and bacon, but I wanted fruit, so my brother made a fruit salad with some berries and bananas. I added some honey though. I also poured honey over my pancakes. I just…had a taste for it.” Cas shrugged.

“And that’s perfectly normal. So what I’ll do is arrange for blood to be drawn tomorrow instead. I’ll need you to fast this evening after eight, and Dean will bring you by in the morning to draw the blood. For now, I’ll just check everything else. Has Dean explained that I will have to do a pelvic exam?” she asked. Cas glanced nervously at his mate before nodding.

“Y-yes. I’ve never had one done before. Will it hurt?”

“No. I just need you to lay back and relax.” She went to wash her hands before slipping gloves on. Cas laid back on the table and reached out for Dean who quickly took his hand.

Evelyn put Cas’ feet up in the stirrups and grabbed a bottle of gel, adding a bit to her fingers. “Deep breath, this will be fast and painless as long as you stay relaxed.” 

Cas took the breath, exhaling slowly as he forced his body to relax. The finger that breached his rim was much smaller than Dean’s and aside from being a slight bit cold, it didn’t hurt at all. A second finger was added and then she using her free hand to press down on his abdomen, bringing his cervix lower so she could check it. She was careful to avoid his prostate, and he was thankful for that.

“Well, being that it’s early the plug, while there, is still soft. By this time next month I’m sure it will be solid and covering the cervix completely. Everything feels normal though. I’m going to check your glands here real quick, make sure everything there is normal too. Were you aware that your slick is produced from a series of glands that line your canal?”

Dean shook his head but Cas nodded. 

“Ok, checking those now…” 

Cas could feel her rubbing along either side of his canal. He tried not to think of how good that felt and his brow furrowed in concentration as he willed himself to not get hard. Her hand withdrew a moment later and then she was checking his testicles and penis. He whimpered and squeezed his eyes even more tightly shut.

“It’s alright. Your hormones are in overdrive right now, so it’s normal.” She patted his knee as she withdrew her hands. “Come on, sit up. One more set of glands to check along with your mating mark.” 

Cas sat up, his eyes filled with tears of shame at the erection he had. The doctor was kind though and ignored it as she pulled back the collar of the exam gown to do a quick check of the scent glands and mating mark.

“Well, everything looks good. Your vitals are good, you’re only about twenty five pounds away from being at a proper weight, and your cervix is sealing up perfectly. An ultrasound is pretty pointless at this time since the baby’s practically invisible, but we can set up one for six weeks from now.” Evelyn took off the gloves and tossed them in the garbage before sitting down and rolling back over to the desk with Cas’ chart. 

“I’m going to write a couple of prescriptions that you’ll want to start taking right away. Prenatal vitamins and if the nausea gets worse or you find yourself unable to hold down anything, an anti-nausea medicine.” She wrote out the prescriptions real quick and handed them to Dean.

“I’ll see you both in the morning to draw the blood. Remember, no eating or drinking anything more than water after eight tonight.” With one last smile she left so Cas could get dressed. He broke down in tears instead.

“Honey? What’s wrong? I could feel how stressed you were through that entire exam.” Dean stood up and stuck the papers with the prescriptions in his pocket before moving to stand in front of his mate. Cas turned away in shame, his breath hitching as he continued to cry.

“Baby, talk to me, what’s the matter?” Dean pleaded. Cas looked up, his eyes red rimmed and filled with tears. He lifted the edge of his gown, revealing his downright painful erection.

“I-I was horny when I w-woke up, but I ignored it. I-It didn’t go a-away though, and she…she….” Cas’ lower lip trembled and he buried his face in his hands. 

“Shhh, it’s ok.” Dean wrapped his mate up in his arms and hugged him as he rubbed his back gently. After a minute he pulled back and lifted Cas’ chin so he could look at him.

“Stay here.” 

Cas watched as Dean walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. When he came back he was smiling.

“What did you do?”

“I explained that we were having a particularly emotional moment after your exam, and I double checked with Cassie to make sure I could get the time to calm you down. She said they have rooms on hand for that because apparently this happens quite frequently. So we’re going to move across the hall. Come on.” Dean took Cas by the hand and helped him down from the exam table.

“Dean, I can’t walk around like this.” Cas motioned towards the tented gown he still wore.

“It’s the door directly across the hall, and no one is going to see you.” Dean gathered up Cas’ clothes and shoes before opening the door. He glanced down the hall to make sure it was clear before crossing the hall and opening the door across the hall. 

“Come on, baby.” He motioned for his mate to come and Cas crossed the hall, stepping into the new room. Instead of an exam table this room had a futon and two chairs, all vinyl covered, no doubt for easy clean up. A cabinet in the corner proved to contain stacks of clean towels and a small door in the wall proved to be a towel drop. There was even a shower in the far corner. Evelyn really was equipped to be dealing with Omegas. Dean was impressed.

“Dean, it hurts.” Cas whined and nudged at his swollen cock. Dean locked the door like Cassie had told him to do because it marked the room from the outside as occupied and went to his mate.

“Come here, darling.” He led his mate to the futon and made him sit down. There were still tears in the Omega’s eyes but he was watching Dean with a mixture of need and curiosity.

“What are you going to do?” Cas asked him.

“Take care of my Omega. You’re hurting, and I can feel it.” Dean smirked when his mate gasped as he knelt down between his legs and pushed the exam gown up.

“Dean, Dean, Dean…” Cas gasped when his mate wrapped one hand around his leaking cock and spread around the pre-come before giving it a few slow strokes. The scent of slick flooded the room, but this time Dean ignored it. His goal was to soothe his mate’s current discomfort so they could leave. He wanted to get his mate back to Gabe’s where he could take his time satisfying his needs, but first he wanted to go and check on Ellen and Jo.

“Dean…” Cas thrust up into Dean’s hand, drawing his attention back to the current task. With his other hand he cupped the Omega’s balls, squeezing them gently and rolling them in his grasp as he increased the speed of his stroke. Ideally he wanted his mate locked on his knot, but the doctor’s office was not the place for that. Cas was gripping his shoulders as he thrust his hips up, chasing Dean’s hand every time it slid up to brush over his swollen tip. With a choked sob Cas came, hard. Dean worked him through it and when Cas gently shoved his hand away, wincing from the overstimulation, he got up to go grab a couple of towels to clean up. He spotted a bottle of cleaner in the cabinet and a check of the label identified it as an enzyme cleaner for getting rid of slick and semen. When he returned to the futon Cas had taken the gown completely off, grimacing at the semen splattered on it. Dean took it and tossed it down the chute before using a towel to clean up his mate’s belly and legs.

“Go take a shower, sweetheart. I’ll get this cleaned up,” he said.

“This is thoroughly humiliating.” Cas’ face crumpled again, but he didn’t burst into tears. His misery and embarrassment was heavy in his scent though, and it bothered Dean to smell.

“Why? It’s the body’s natural reaction to stimulation. And it doesn’t bother me to take care of you. I enjoy it, honey. I love you.” Dean wiped lovingly at his mate’s legs, clearing them of slick before leaning down to nuzzle against the mating mark. Cas tilted his head, submitting out of instinct, and Dean took the opportunity to lick at the mark before standing up and pulling his mate to his feet.

“Go on, gorgeous, take a quick shower. There should be soap in there meant for Omegas.” He tapped his mate’s butt playfully as he started for the bathroom, earning a smirk from the man. As the water started and Cas began washing up, Dean hurried to clean all the slick and semen up from the futon. His own erection, which had been pressing painfully against his pants, had waned and as his mind turned to the message that had been written across the mirror at the bar, it dissipated completely. He needed to keep his family safe, and that meant everyone he loved, not just Cas and Sam. 

When Cas emerged from the shower, he looked tired rather than embarrassed. Dean helped him get dressed and, taking his mate by the hand, they left, heading out to the lobby. Alan was on the phone when he walked in, giving orders, and he nodded towards the door, indicating the men he’d called in for added security. 

“We just need to make the appointment for tomorrow morning for the blood work and then the exam in six weeks,” Dean said to Cas.

“Alright,” Cas said softly. He was eyeing Alan and the men by the door nervously. Dean made both appointments, adding the date the following month in his calendar on his phone before walking over to Alan who handed him the phone he had dropped earlier. He had six missed calls but he texted Charlie to have her call the shops that had left messages while he listened to the messages Ellen and Sam had left for him. 

“We have to get to the bar,” he said. Alan nodded and motioned to the men by the door. He tucked his phone into his pocket.

“We got word that Alistair was spotted near the bar, but Ruby was spotted near your mate’s brother’s house. Someone attempted to hack into the security system again, but it is in the process of being replaced as we speak and we have men guarding the technicians and the house so no one can tamper with it. Oh, and someone hacked into your computer at the house, put on spyware to monitor everything you did, so we have someone working currently to remove that. In the meantime we brought in another computer, and your friend Charlie installed the necessary programs so you can work from Gabriel’s house. A dark-haired man that is not Alistair and a blonde woman were nosing around your house while you were in the exam room, asking questions. We captured their images and ran feature recognition software. It was Fergus Crowley and Lilith Drake. A couple of nasty Alphas with rap sheets a mile long. They were told to leave and they did. We’re assuming they’re affiliated with Alistair, though we can’t find an actual link between them,” Alan explained.

“Oh, they’re linked. Lilith, I know that name. I’ve seen her in The District. She has…recruited for Alistair. Crowley, he’s bad news too, but he doesn’t like it in The District, so he stays out. Instead, he’s a name I’ve heard mentioned, but never actually have seen him. But I hear he’s trouble. Distributes the drugs that Ruby sells,” Cas said.

“Are there any other names we should add to our list of people to watch out for?” Alan asked. Cas sniffed and rolled his eyes.

“So many names, they’re all lowlife scum that would love to see Omegas continue in subjugation, but the ones associated with Alistair specifically?” He tapped his chin as he thought. “Well, there’s a woman named Eve, she runs an Omega brothel; Alistair hides out there sometimes. Oh, and there’s a shady guy named Edgar, another pimp, you have to be careful of him too. I don’t know his last name though. And there’s a doctor that has been known to steal Omegas and force their bonds to be broken. He is just known as ‘The Doctor,’ and everyone is scared of him. He has delivered Omegas to Alistair in the past, but I don’t know if he’s actually working _for_ him per se.”

Alan was busy writing these names down, along with the descriptions Cas gave and as they walked out the door he got back on the phone, giving the list of names to his men to look into these people. 

“Where to?” Alan asked.

“The Roadhouse,” Dean replied. He needed to check on Ellen and Jo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave a comment, let me know what you think about it. I am off to go grocery shopping now...


	16. Guilt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas is devasted by the damage Alistair wrought on The Roadhouse and he blames himself. The message that was left behind further convinces him of that. For the first time, Dean is unable to console his mate and it leads to his own self doubt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an angsty chapter, but it serves a purpose. I do hope you enjoy this chapter.

When Alan pulled the car into the lot two men approached as soon as they car was parked. Dean and Cas were escorted inside.

“Oh my God…” Cas looked around in dismay at all the broken furniture and shattered bottles strewn about. The police were still there, though forensics was gone. Jody greeted them.

“So, based on the message that was left behind, we know this was part of the attack last night, and Sam’s attack the other night. This Alistair has made it blatantly clear that he is challenging your claim over your mate, and when we catch him, he’s not getting out. Ever,” she said.

“What message? He left a message? Did you know this, Dean? Is that what got you so upset earlier?” Cas turned to his mate, who reluctantly nodded.

“Yeah, Ellen told me about it.” 

“Well, what did it say?” Cas asked. Dean chewed on his lower lip as he debated whether to tell his mate everything it had said. Cas seemed to realize he was contemplating holding back information or actually lying, knowing how much he hated liars. He crossed his arms and glared at his mate, his blue eyes turning icy.

“Tell me what it said, Dean.”

Dean glanced over at the mirrors that were behind the bar, but the words were gone. Briefly he wondered who had removed them. 

“Fine. It said that I had corrupted what was his, and as payment he was going to kill everyone I ever loved. And then he was coming for me.”

Cas was quiet for a long moment as he looked out over the bar. “And he thought he would start with Ellen and Jo since he couldn’t get to us in the house. Had Charlie not come and overridden Ruby’s access, I think that’s the word Charlie had used... Anyway, if she hadn’t done that he was intending to break in last night and kill us as we slept, am I right?”

Dean looked at Jody, but she nodded towards Cas. This was on him to tell his mate.

“I don’t know. I think that it’s a possibility.”

Cas turned his gaze back on his Alpha, but Dean couldn’t get a gauge on his emotions.

“I brought this on you. I brought this on all of you. This is all my fault. If I’d just submitted to him when he first came after me, you’d all be safe. Now…” He shook his head and pushed Dean’s hands away when he reached out for him. He didn’t want to be comforted. “He wanted me and I wouldn’t let him have me, and now he’s raining hell down on your family. On our _pup_. If he comes after you, Dean, I’ll die. And so will our _child_.” Now Dean could smell the turmoil his mate was feeling, the increasing anxiety that was spilling over into him and making him twitch as his heart began to race, but the worst part was the absolute heartbreak his mate was experiencing right then, and the guilt. It was crushing.

“Cas, no! It’s _not_ your fault at all! This is all on Alistair. The guy is nuts, wanting something he knew he could never have. I promise you’ll be safe, and our family will be safe. _Nothing_ is ever going to happen to you or anyone in our pack.” He reached again for his mate but Cas jumped back, not allowing himself to be touched.

“Don’t touch me!” he snapped. Dean jerked as though he’d been slapped and slowly wrapped his arms around himself. Cas ran his fingers through his hair as he turned and stormed off. 

“Don’t follow him. Give him a few minutes. I would highly recommend therapy. He is holding himself to blame, and he is not the one at fault. This Alistair? He is nuttier than a fruitcake. We don’t even know why he would still want your mate. He can’t claim him. He could force him into prostitution but really, it’s a turnoff to most Alphas to breed with a mated Omega. Maybe he intends to keep Cas for himself? But then there’s that same issue. How long before he became sickened by Cas’ scent? And he can’t kill you, or Cas dies. He has to know that. I can’t begin to understand what is going through this man’s mind.” Jody shook her head, frowning as she tried to work through all of the possible scenarios. Dean was sickened by everything she had suggested and looked around for his mate, but Cas was nowhere to be seen.

“Cas?” He called out. 

“He went through there. James is with him,” Alan said. 

“Did I hear right before? Cas is with pup?” Jody asked.

“Yeah, he is. We just got back from the doctor,” Dean replied.

“Well, congratulations on that. We’re going keep looking for this guy and all of his lackeys. We’re still compiling a list of known associates though, so it will take some time,” she said.

“Cas gave me a list of some people that are known in The District to associate with Alistair. I have it here.” Alan pulled his notepad from his pocket and read all of the names off to her so she could add them to her own notes.

“Guys, I need to find Cas. I’ll be back.” Dean excused himself and hurried to find his mate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean followed his mate’s scent, wrinkling his nose at how acrid and bitter it was. He focused on what his mate was feeling at that moment. Pain, guilt, fear, and it was overwhelming for Dean. He felt as though he was failing his mate. Finding his way into one of the storage rooms, he sat down and pulled out his phone. He needed to talk to someone.

Dean: The bar was trashed, did you hear? Ellen and Jo are safe though, but I can’t console Cas. He’s blaming himself and won’t let me near him. It’s killing me because he won’t let me even touch him. I don’t know what to do!

It was a few minutes before he got a response.

Sam: It’s hard to type with broken fingers, you know that? TG for speech to text. Where is he now?

Dean: I don’t know. 

Sam: Probably with Ellen. Go find her. He blames himself. We all just need to keep telling him it’s not his fault. He can’t control the psychos of the world. Are you ok?

Dean: No.

Sam: Hang on I have a call.

Dean sniffled, feeling his own tears threatening to spill. He was failing, as an Alpha, as a mate, as a soon to be father. As a man. That thought pushed him over the edge and he lost it, the tears falling hard as his entire body was wracked with sobs. He pulled his knees up to his chest and laid his head down on them as his own misery and self-doubt took over. Cas was his true mate, and he loved him more than anything, but he was putting his mate’s life in danger by expecting him to stay here. What if Cas didn’t want him anymore? He let out a strangled cry at that thought, his heart threatening to break. Alphas weren’t supposed to cry, that’s what his father had always told him. They were the strength in a family, the backbone. But Dean didn’t really believe that, he never had. The strength of an Alpha came from their Omega, and the thought that he could lose his…

He hugged his arms around his knees and sobbed harder. He was a failure, just as his father had told him he would be. Between his crying and hitched breaths he didn’t hear the door open. When something warm touched his face he started, gasping and shooting his head up to see Cas kneeling in front of him.

“Dean, no,” he said softly.

“D-don’t leave me. Please, I’ll try harder, I promise!”

Cas sat down, pulling his mate into his arms. He stroked his fingers through Dean’s hair as he waited for the Alpha to get his emotions under control.

“It’s ok, you know,” he said once Dean had fallen silent. Dean’s head was resting in his lap, but he turned to look up at him.

“What’s ok?”

“To cry. Whoever told you Alphas can’t cry was an idiot. They can’t always be stoic and strong. It’s a heavy cross to try and bear alone. I’m your mate, Dean. I’m not going anywhere. I just…I feel helpless. Like this is all my fault. I talked to Ellen and to Jo, and they both kept repeating the same thing everyone else keeps telling me, that it’s not my fault. It just feels like it is, and I feel responsible for everyone’s safety. Including yours.” Cas was calmer now, his scent back to its normal pleasantness with an underlying sweet, strawberry cupcake scent that Dean was already growing to love.

“I feel like I’m a failure. My dad told me I would never succeed. I set out to prove him wrong, but this thing with Alistair? It is _not_ your fault. Jody said it out there too after you walked away. You can’t control the thoughts of every crazy out there. But I promise I’ll do everything to keep you safe. You’re my world, Cas. You and the pup we created.” He turned so he could place a hand over his mate’s stomach. Soon there would be a bump. The thought excited him.

“Ellen said something that made a lot of sense. She said we have to stick together, be a team, or Alistair will pick us apart and destroy us. I let my own guilt and anger at myself take over earlier. I shouldn’t have pushed you away like that. I didn’t feel that I deserved your comfort. It didn’t dawn on me that by doing that I was hurting you in the process. I’m just so used to taking care of myself that I forgot I needed to take care of you, too. I apologize for that. I love you, Dean. You are an amazing Alpha, and I really _do_ feel safe with you. I’m just scared of what Alistair might do to… ‘our’ pack. That’s a new concept for me, to think of myself as being part of a pack. I was essentially thrown out of my old one, so finding my place in yours is a daunting task. And I don’t want our pup to grow up in fear of what Alistair might do. This needs to end. I want him caught and put in jail. Or else he needs to die if they can’t catch him,” Cas spoke calmly, his words a soothing balm to Dean’s soul.

“We’ll beef up security if we need to. Whatever is needed to catch him,” Dean promised.

“Good. Now, can you take me home? I’m not feeling very well,” Cas asked.

“Of course, honey. We’ll go now.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean had Alan drive them home after he’d checked in with Ellen to make sure she didn’t need anything. Once at the house, Cas headed for their room to lie down. Gabe told Dean to go take care of his mate and went with Alan to go and pick up Cas’ prescriptions and some lunch. He walked in the room to find his mate curled up in the bed, lying on his side. Cas was awake, just staring at the wall, but when Dean slid into the bed next to him he turned and wrapped his arms around him.

“What’s on your mind?” the Alpha asked as he pulled his mate closer.

“I was thinking about what we were talking about yesterday, about my having friends. I think Sam is my friend, and I know he’s my brother, but I think Gabe is, too.” Cas played with the open buttons on his Alpha’s flannel as he talked. “I want to go in to work tomorrow, after the blood drawing.”

Dean felt a sliver of fear as it slid down his spine but he fought the urge to put his foot down and deny his mate what he wanted.

“Alright, but I’m going in with you to talk to the principal and let him know that until this shit is over I’m putting full security on the school. I want you and your students to stay safe. And I will come to pick you up after school.”

“That is acceptable. I just…I miss my kids, and I need to work to get my mind off things.” Cas brought a hand down to press gently against his belly. It was still amazing knowing there was life growing in there.

“How’s your stomach? Do you need more tea?” Dean asked.

“Not right this moment, but maybe in a bit. Right now I just want you to hold me.”

They laid there until Gabe came to knock at the door. Dean pulled himself up from the bed and went to open the door. 

“Here, his meds. I have lunch in the kitchen if you guys are hungry,” Gabe said.

“Yeah, Cas? You hungry?” Dean turned to look at his mate who nodded and got up from the bed.

“I should since it’s the last meal I can have today,” Cas said. When he walked over he leaned into his mate and Dean kissed the top of his head. 

“We’ll enjoy our lunch and then maybe we’ll go check out a couple of stores, how does that sound?”

Cas looked up at him and smiled. “I would like that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You'll get fluff next chapter, I promise. I hope you liked this one. Leave me a comment, let me know what you think of it.


	17. The Mediator

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean cooks dinner for their little family, getting Cas involved in the process. When Gabe mentions he has a date that evening, it doesn't settle well with sam. Dean is left to try and clean up the mess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope that you enjoy this chapter. Next update will be Wednesday!

The rest of the day passed uneventfully as did the next day, despite Dean’s nerves. There had been no word on Alistair or anyone associated with him and not knowing was turning out to be very stressful. While Cas finished working that day, Dean headed down to the shop with Charlie to check in and make sure everything was still running smoothly before heading to the house. When he stepped inside his stomach fell. The cleaning crew had done a stellar job of cleaning up and disposing of everything that had been damaged, but they were still working hard. He walked through the house with a notepad, making notes of everything that would need to be repaired, from broken windows to walls with holes in them. When he got to the room that had been Cas’ he frowned deeply. The bed was gone, but the room hadn’t been tackled yet. The scent of heat was gone now, but everything in here was trashed. All the clothes he had bought for his mate had been shredded to pieces, and the dresser had been destroyed. He was still walking around making notes of what changes needed to be made in order to convert the room into a nursery when Alan walked in.

“Dean? It’s time to go pick Cas up.”

Dean jotted down one last note before looking up at him and nodding. “I think I want to take Cas out of town this weekend. Someplace with more equality so he’s not nervous the entire time. Can you arrange an escort and lodging?”

Alan nodded and together they walked out of the room. “There’s a furniture expo in Tampa this weekend. You could go and look at some furniture. It looks like most of the bedroom furniture and living room furniture will need to be replaced.”

“I like that. I’ll let Cas pick some new pieces out, especially for the pup’s room.” Dean smiled as he imagined Cas sitting in a rocking chair, nursing their pup as he tried to rock it to sleep. “I want a canopy over the crib though,” he blurted almost as an afterthought. Alan chuckled.

“A canopy would be nice. Might I suggest a forest theme? Colors would be neutral. Or if you find out what you’re having ahead of time, an adventure theme for a boy, or maybe a flower garden for a girl.”

They walked out to the car and got in. 

“I don’t want to impose gender expectations on our pup, but the idea of a pink bedroom with a ruffled canopy really appeals to me for a little girl. And frilly dresses. I could care less what she turned out to be, but she’d be my little princess.” Dean was lost in the thought, smiling to himself as they pulled into the school parking lot.

“She’ll definitely be loved and adored,” Alan said, smiling.

Cas was crossing the parking lot with two of the security staff, and Dean got out to hold the door for him.

“How was your day?” Dean asked.

“It was good. Kids were glad to have me back, until I sprung a pop quiz on them,” Cas replied, smirking mischievously. “And Meg was all over me about the pup. I would like to invite her and her mate over one evening for dinner, once we’re back in the house.” 

“That would be nice. I stopped by the house. I was assessing the damage, and I thought maybe this weekend we’d get out of town. Alan told me about a furniture expo down in Tampa. We can go down and find some new pieces to replace the ones that were trashed at the house, but…” Dean reached out to take his mate’s hand. “We could see what they have for the nursery.” Cas smiled, and Dean was glad it was so bright and warm. He’d had a rather dark cloud over him the last few days.

“I would like that. Are we going to fly?” Cas asked.

“We will. It won’t be a long flight, but we could drive if you want. We’ll have an escort either way, so there won’t be any worries. We can bring Sam and Gabe too if you’d like.” 

Cas’ eyes lit up. “Really? I’d like that.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back at the house, Dean found it to be empty. He immediately texted both Gabe and his brother. Gabe responded first.

Gabe: I’m at work. Sam mentioned heading to the school. He missed his classes and was concerned about falling behind. I made sure he had two of your guys for escorts.

Dean frowned. He didn’t like the idea of Sam at the university with Alistair and his group still out and stalking them.

Dean: I’m taking Cas to Tampa this weekend for a furniture expo. You’re invited. Do you want to come?

Gabe: Normally I’d jump at the chance but I have to work. It’s ordering time and I have to order for all of my shops. It’ll take up my whole weekend. But maybe when Cas is out of school we can all go somewhere fun? Atlantic City maybe?

Dean snorted and shook his head. Of course Gabe would want to gamble.

Dean: I’m taking Cas on his first road trip once school lets out. I want some time with him before our pup gets here. But when we get back we should all definitely go somewhere and do something fun. And no, I’m not taking my pregnant mate to Atlantic City.

Gabe: You’re no fun. We can think of something fun to do. We have a few weeks still. Did Cassie have a good day at work?

Dean: He did. Sprung a pop quiz on the kids and made them all regret having him back.

Gabe: That’s my boy! There are muffins in the bread box if he’s hungry and juice in the fridge.

Dean: Sounds good. I’ll get started on dinner here in a bit so we can all eat when you and Sam get home.

Gabe: You’re going to spoil me. I may not let you move out.

Dean laughed. Gabe was a nut.

Dean: See you in a while.

Gabe: See ya!

Dean went in search of his mate and found Cas sitting in their bed with a stack of papers piled around him. He looked up, smiling when the Alpha walked in.

“Grading papers?” Dean asked.

“I am.” Cas patted the pile closest to him.

“Are you hungry? Gabe says he left us some muffins.”

Cas’ eyes lit up. “Oh, yes! I’m starving actually.”

“Ok, I’ll bring you one. Do you want some milk or juice with it?” Dean asked.

“Milk, please,” Cas replied.

Dean left to go to the kitchen. Alan was sitting on the couch with a tablet in hand, and he could see him from where he was moving around.

“You want a muffin?” he asked.

“Sure, sounds good,” Alan replied. Dean went and handed him one before taking the milk and muffin to Cas. After making sure his mate was settled and had everything he needed, he took out his phone to text Charlie and went back to the kitchen to look for something to make for dinner. 

Dean: Hey, everything ok at the shop?

Charlie: Yep. Surveillance cameras caught someone that looks an awful lot like Alistair snooping around last night, but the security staff chased him off.

Dean: Damn it. I want that bastard caught already!

Charlie: I know. I think at this point he really just wants to make you suffer. He’s torturing you.

Dean: He made a threat against me. Went after Ellen and Jo, but they’re ok. He’s threatening to kill everyone I love.

Charlie: He won’t succeed. We know who he is, who his people are. I think you need to flush him out. He has to be hiding in TD. If you start with the places he’s known to hide, you’ll force him and his cronies to surface. Start with the brothel. Prostitution is illegal. Get the attention of the mayor, and if he won’t listen, get the attention of the governor. You know she’ll support you. But you need to start fighting back instead of hiding, because he’s not going to stop. He needs to be stopped.

Dean considered her words as he pulled chicken from the fridge. 

Dean: I’ll call her Monday and see what she says. I’ll let her know what’s going on with Cas too.

Charlie: Good idea. She’s a good lady and she might be able to help with looking for Alistair.

Dean: True. I’m taking Cas and probably Sam too down to Tampa for a furniture show this weekend, so I’ll need you to handle any complaints or questions from the stores while I’m away.

Charlie: That’s cool. Looking at stuff for the pup?

Dean: And furniture for the house. Alistair trashed most of it.

Charlie: Well, on the plus side? You’re giving Cas a chance to put his mark on the house. 

Dean smiled as he located a frying pan and the oil. She was right.

Dean: You’re right. I was going to let him pick out pieces anyway, but I hadn’t thought of it in that context. I’m going to go, I’m making dinner. I’ll catch you later.

Charlie: Yep, later!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean went through the motions of preparing a stir fry, humming softly to himself as he sautéed the chicken before looking for a wok. Gabe didn’t have one, so he was forced to improvise. 

“That smells delicious, what are you making?” Cas had followed his nose, drawn by the smell of cooking meat, and he was leaning past Dean to see what was in the pan.

“I decided we’d do a stir fry tonight. Gabe had the ingredients for it. Even had edamame in the freezer.” Dean replied as he moved the meat to a back burner that was turned off so he could start on the vegetables.

“You’re speaking a foreign language to me. I’ve heard of stir fry, but I’ve never had it. And what is an edamame?” Cas looked up expectantly. Dean picked up the bag of edamame and handed it to him.

“It’s soybean pods.” 

Cas looked at the bag and then at the other vegetables Dean was adding to a new pan.

“I have heartburn tonight. Is there something I can take for it?” Cas inquired.

“Let’s find out.” Dean pulled his phone out and looked up how to treat it in pregnancy. “Ok, let me text Gabe to bring home some Tums for you.” Dean looked at the bottle of soy sauce and suddenly doubted that stir fry was a good idea for dinner.

“This might exacerbate your heartburn. How about I make you some grilled chicken and veggies? That should go well on your stomach.”

Cas shrugged. “I’d like to taste the stir fry, but if you think grilled chicken would be a better choice, will you make stir fry again after our pup is here?”

“Of course, sweetheart. I’ll cook you anything you want.” He pressed a tender kiss to his mate’s forehead before finding an old George Foreman grill and putting a seasoned piece of raw chicken in it to cook. A quick text was sent to Gabe with a thumbs up emoticon received in response before he went back to cooking. Cas watched with fascination as Dean cooked, explaining each step in the process as he created both meals. When Cas asked to step in and actually help, he let him, guiding him as he added the soy sauce to the chicken and vegetables. They had just finished up the steamed vegetables and some whole grain rice for Cas to eat with his chicken when the alarm beeped, indicating that someone had come home. 

“Hey guys,” Gabe greeted as he walked in the kitchen. “Dinner smells amazing.”

“If you set the table we’ll get to eat that much faster,” Dean told him. Gabe set a large pink box on the counter and rubbed his hands together eagerly as he went to the cabinet with the plates and took a bunch down. He set the table while Dean finished the last of the stir fry. Cas helped him to carry everything to the table. 

“What’s in the box?” Cas asked. His nose told him it was something sweet but he didn’t want to upset the Alpha by just opening it.

“Dessert, little brother. I had some leftovers, so I brought them home,” Gabe replied. They were just sitting down to eat when the alarm beeped again. Dean wasn’t concerned, Alan was watching the door. A minute later Sam was lurching past the kitchen doorway with his bag. He disappeared into his room, returning a minute later. When he walked in the kitchen he smiled.

“Dinner smells great. Stir fry? Yes!” He slid into the empty seat between Cas and Gabe and Dean handed him a plate of food. As they ate, they talked about the plans for the weekend.

“I can’t go, I’m sorry,” Sam told his brother.

“Why, planning to spend time with Jess?” Dean asked. Sam’s eyes flickered over to Gabe briefly before settling on the remaining food on his plate.

“Uh, no. I just have a paper I need to get finished. Typing is getting a little easier, but it’s still hard.” Sam waved his still bandaged fingers around. The only reason he was able to type at all was because Charlie had installed a talk to text feature on his laptop.

“You and Jess doing ok?” Dean was genuinely concerned for his little brother. Jess was a nice girl but sort of flaky. He knew she wasn’t in love with Sam, and he was pretty sure Sam wasn’t in love with her, but with as much time as they’d spent apart recently, it wasn’t good for any relationship. Sam just shrugged.

“She hasn’t had time for me lately. She’s busy with school, I’m busy with school, and then this happened.”

“Well, you do what you think is best,” Dean told him. Sam smiled weakly before sticking a forkful of vegetables in his mouth. When dinner was finished Dean and Gabe cleared the table.

“Dessert time,” Dean said happily.

“Go for it. I brought it home for you guys. I’m going to go take a shower, I have a date tonight and I need to start getting ready so I’m not late.” Gabe said as he started backing up towards the door.

“Oh really?” Dean said, grinning.

“Yep. Nice guy, stopped in today to pick up a dozen donuts for his work, a company lunch or something. We got to talking and then flirting and I asked him out. We’re meeting at a bar downtown. And don’t worry, I won’t be bringing him back here,” Gabe chuckled.

“Have fun,” Dean said. Gabe gave a wave as he disappeared from the kitchen.

“I plan on it!”

Dean brought the pink box to the table and opened it. It was filled with a variety of pastries and Cas gasped when he saw how many had fit in there. He plucked a sugar coated piece out.

“Is this a donut? It smells like one, but it doesn’t have the hole in the center.” Cas turned it around in his hand until he spotted a small hole in the side where something red was leaking out.

“It is. It’s a jelly filled one. They’re really good,” Dean replied as he found an apple tart and pulled it out. He pushed the box towards Sam.

“Grab something.”

Sam shook his head as he got to his feet. “No thanks. I don’t feel very well, I’m going to go lay down.”

Dean and Cas watched him leave. Once his bedroom door had closed, Cas let out a heavy sigh.

“What?” Dean asked.

“He’s upset, couldn’t you smell that?” Cas turned to look at his mate questioningly.

“Well, yeah…” Dean scratched at his check, his nails scratching over the stubble there. “Is it because Gabe has a date tonight? Sam has made it clear to everyone that he doesn’t want another Alpha. He has no business getting mad at Gabe for wanting to date. Gabe isn’t his Alpha.”

“He’s not mad, he’s hurt. He doesn’t want to care about Gabe. He doesn’t want to want him, but he does in spite. I do agree, he has no claim on Gabe and therefore my brother can do as he pleases, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t sting,” Cas said.

“Should I talk to him?” 

Cas shook his head. “No. He won’t listen to an Alpha. Perhaps I can say something later. You could, however, say something to Gabe.”

Dean finished off his tart, nodding to his mate before finding a chocolate chip cookie and biting into it. He didn’t want to be the mediator between his brother and another Alpha, but if it brought peace to the pack, he would do it. He was going to need more sugary pastries first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I left you hanging. Muah ha ha ha ha! But you still love me, I know it. I hope you liked this chapter. Leave a comment, let me know what you think.


	18. Handling the Media, and Stupid Brothers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean goes to talk to Gabe, to encourage him to work on things between him and Sam.
> 
> The trip to Tampa turns into an opportunity for Dean to bring attention to the deplorable state of The District, and to Alistair. Having an entire nation alerted to the crazy Alpha's stalking is better than trying to handle things on their own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am putting this chapter up now as I will be busy later. I do hope you enjoy it. I'm not having a very good day today. My depression is at an all time low right now and I spent most of the morning crying. It's a miracle I even got out of bed today. Not harping or asking for sympathy, just letting you all know what kind of headset I'm in, and why I've been writing so darn much lately. This has been an incredibly rough year for me. I nearly lost my mother, and while she made it, she has essentially given up. My house is a mess, my kids won't help me clean it, I have zero energy or desire to even vacuum, let alone clean, and the real icing on the cake was losing my job last month because my computer was too advanced for their antiquated systems. I've been applying but the motivation isn't there. I just want to go to sleep and not wake up. This is turning out to be a shitty holiday for me. No money, no motivation. I have none of my usual desire to cook or bake. I wish I had the strength to cook. 
> 
> Writing is my safe haven. Escaping into fiction is how I cope. Yes, I need to see a doctor, and soon, but I don't have insurance. I'm working on that. Again, energy is required, and I have none. Seeing your comments, they're the bright spot in my day, they truly are. I really do love reading and replying to them all. Ok, I've whined enough, I hope you like this chapter. Enjoy!

Gabe was in his room getting dressed when Dean knocked on the door. He opened it, mildly surprised to see the other Alpha there.

“What’s up, Dean-o? Cassie ok?” he asked.

“Oh, yeah, he’s peachy. Can we, uh, talk for a minute?” Dean scratched at his chin as he waited for Gabe to answer.  
“Sure, come on in.” He stepped aside, and Dean moved to the chair in the corner and sat down.

“Shut the door. Sometimes walls have ears,” Dean said. Gabe snorted as he closed it.

“You sure you didn’t grow up in a house with a bunch of siblings?”

Dean chuckled and shook his head. “No, but trust me, Sam snooped enough for ten others.” Gabe laughed too as he walked to his closet to select a shirt.

“Yeah, sounds like my brother Alfie. Or my sister Hannah. God, she was always tattling!”

“Yeah, I’m glad I just had the one.” Dean said. He cleared his throat and looked over at Gabe. “Can I, uh, talk to you about Sam?”

Gabe had pulled a shirt out and shrugged it on, his fingers were poised over the buttons but he looked up. “He’s mad that I have a date, right? Well that’s a shame. I made my intentions clear, and he has a girlfriend. What am I supposed to do?”

Dean didn’t have the first clue, to be honest. But he was willing to try and help his brother and Gabe figure things out.

“Jess, she’s safe. You get that, right? But she isn’t in love with my brother. And I’m fairly certain he’s not in love with her. She’s just…” Dean waved his arms around as he searched for the right word. Gabe came around to sit on the edge of the bed facing him.

“Safe, I get it. He was hurt that bad by an Alpha?”

“His mate tried to kill him. Thanks to the stupid laws in this state, he could have gotten away with it had I not intervened and fought him to get my brother back. Once I did? I had to take him to the hospital. God, he was so messed up! He had broken bones, half his teeth had been knocked down his throat, his hair had been ripped out, he was being starved and raped repeatedly. He suffered verbal and physical abuse; it was the worst thing I’ve ever seen in my life. If I hadn’t had the financial means to legally take his mate’s rights away, he could have taken my brother back and killed him. Sam spent six months recovering, and the vast majority of that was spent in therapy trying to overcome the mental damage that asshole caused. I expected that he would never, ever show interest in another Alpha. He’s wary at best of most, and downright terrified of some. And there is no reason for it to be like that. My brother, and all Omegas and Betas, they should be able to take any mate they want without fear that they will be treated like property, tortured, or killed. I know he’s been fighting how he feels about you. He’s warring with himself right now. He likes the safety that comes with having an Alpha, the security and being cared for and loved, but he’s absolutely terrified that what happened with his last mate will happen again. I’m not saying that you would ever do such a thing, but you have to consider his point of view. We didn’t grow up with the best role model either. Our dad was an asshole who beat me every chance he got, until I presented as an Alpha and wouldn’t take his shit anymore. Then he started in on Sam. I wouldn’t tolerate that, so I grabbed my brother and left. We went to stay with Ellen. You met her when you went to get us lunch. Her and Bobby, they raised us. Taught us how Alphas and Betas should really act, and how to properly treat Omegas and just everyone in general.”

“I hadn’t realized his mate had been that cruel. God, what is _wrong_ with people?” Gabe was angry just thinking that someone did such horrible things to a man as wonderful as Sam.

“I just want to know what your intentions towards my brother are. Do you like him? Like as for a potential mate?” Dean asked.

“Well, yeah, but like I said before, he has a girlfriend and I don’t want to come between that,” Gabe replied.

“You’re an honorable man, I admire that. I suggest not giving up on him quite yet. He’s a Winchester, stubborn is in our blood, but I know he likes you. Keep showing him that you’re not like his last Alpha and that you don’t mean him any harm. Don’t give up this early in the game. Are you serious about this date you have tonight? Like, is the guy really something special?” Dean asked.

Gabe waved a hand dismissively and rolled his eyes. “Oh, there is no date. No one wants me. I was just trying to get a rise out of Sam, to see if I could get him to come around, stake a claim, just… _something_. I just wanted him to show that he liked me back,” he said miserably. 

Dean felt bad for the guy. He’d already been rejected by the Omega mother of his child, abandoned and essentially told that he wasn’t wanted, and now he wanted Sam, and Sam was essentially doing the same thing.

“Look, Sam is not the same as the Omega that left you, ok? He won’t lead you on just so you’ll provide for him. He can take care of himself, and besides, if he chose never to work a day in his life, I’d always provide for him, so money isn’t what he’s wanting. He wants a mate he can trust explicitly and love unconditionally, and that will love him in return. But he won’t accept just anyone. He wants one of his choosing, and one that will make the effort to prove to him how much he means to them. I guarantee he’s in his room right now second guessing himself and thinking that you don’t really want him. So, if you want to properly court my brother, you have my blessing. Now go and earn his.” Dean stood up and started for the door.

“For the record? Fake date? As much as I want to say it’s a wicked cool idea to make him jealous, it’s actually a really bad idea.”

With that he left the room, leaving Gabe to figure out for himself what he really wanted to do.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean arranged for the plane again, but he also arranged for a second plane to take the security staff. He wanted to be alone with his mate, and that wasn’t going to happen with four other large, menacing-looking Alphas sitting around them. The last thing he needed was for Cas to be stressed, and if Cas was stressed on the flight, he wouldn’t be able to successfully keep Dean from panicking. Thankfully the flight to Tampa was short, and Cas was relaxed and happy when they landed. Three orgasms will do that to a person.

The drive to the expo was what took the longest. They came straight from the airport in a secured limo, and they were escorted inside. People recognized Dean of course, and that set Cas on edge. Dean had to remind his mate that as much as he really didn’t like it, he was a bit of a celebrity and with that came a farir amount of notoriety. He stopped to talk with people about their cars and about life in Kansas, and he got the idea that this would be a good venue to mention his plans to revitalize The District. Cas beamed brightly at him as he told various people and eventually the news crew that showed up to try and get an interview about what he planned to do. He mentioned Alistair and his threats, the damage he had already wrought on their family, and somehow a simple trip to look at baby furniture turned into a national news story about the billionaire businessman and his Omega mate and how they were being stalked by an Alpha the police couldn’t catch because of backwards laws and a lack of funding to monitor The Omega District properly. While Dean did manage to find the canopy crib he wanted, a piece that Cas absolutely loved, they ended up with security having to shoo people away as more and more news stations came to try and get an interview. Dean ended up contacting his lawyer to set up a press conference, which he did, and he went in front of the cameras with his mate to tell the world. The more eyes that were watching for Alistair and his goons, the better.

Overall they had picked out a new couch, a new bedroom set for their room, and the crib for the nursery. Dean had suggested the forest theme, but Cas was on the fence about it. He was, however, in agreement that if the pup was a girl, she would have a plethora of frilly little dresses. Neither man cared if she turned out to be an Alpha that never wore a dress her entire adult life. As a tiny baby, they wanted her to wear them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They stopped by their house before going to Gabe’s. Dean wasn’t really that eager to be around his brother and Gabe if there was a ton of tension still between the two of them. Besides, he wanted to make sure everything was coming along nicely. Cas was wary, sticking close to Dean’s side as they walked through the house. All the damaged furniture had been removed and everything had been thoroughly cleaned. Crews were still there, though, repairing broken windows, mirrors, plumbing (how on Earth Alistair could have done that much damage in such a short time period, Dean had no idea), and damaged walls, but the worst of it was fixed. Part of what he had been doing this past weekend was calling around to different police stations to inquire about adopting retired police dogs. He had located a station about two hours from where they lived that was retiring three dogs within the month. Dean had asked to come and meet the dogs and see if they were a good fit for his family. The captain had agreed and they had an appointment the week after school let out for the summer to drive up and meet the dogs.

Cas stayed for a long time in his old room. Everything that had been damaged in here was gone, leaving behind four empty walls. He imagined where they would put the crib, and where the pup’s dresser and armoire would go. It was still mind blowing to him to know that he was going to be a father, and not only that, his pup would never want for anything. It would be loved, treasured, and safe. That thought brought a sense of relief so intense that he burst into tears. Dean, sensing his distress, came running.

“What’s the matter, honey? Are you ok?” He had an armful of sobbing Omega, and he hugged his mate close as he tried to soothe him. “Talk to me, sweetheart, tell me what’s going on.” 

“My pup, it’s going to be safe. I-I never thought I’d get to have pups, unless I was raped or forced into prostitution, and I never thought they’d be safe. This all feels so surreal.” Cas sniffled and buried his face against Dean’s shoulder.

“I know. And I promise you that our pups will always be safe, and so will you. We’re going to push for the laws themselves to get changed, so that things are safe for Omegas everywhere and not just for our family and friends. Only when it’s safe for everyone can we finally relax. I don’t want our kids knowing the kind of fear that the generations before them knew. I want the birth of Omegas to be something that is celebrated and seen as the blessing that it is, not as a shame or blight upon a family. If every pup we ever have turns out to be an Omega I will love them and treat them the exact same as if every pup we had turned out to be an Alpha. I’m hoping for a mix so that our kids get the opportunity to learn equality.” Dean had pulled his mate over to the wall where the dresser used to be and slid down until he was sitting on the floor with his mate curled up in his lap.

“Tell me, what color should we paint the walls? I’m thinking a light green. Not quite mint, but one where if it turns out to be a girl, pinks and purples would look pretty, or blues and yellows for a boy. And how about on this wall we have a tree painted that will actually be a growth chart?” Dean pointed out things he thought would look nice in the room and slowly Cas began to participate.

“I’d like the crib against that wall, and maybe a mural would be nice? Something whimsical. I don’t know what. And on that wall a family tree might be cute, where the picture frames are hung to look like they’re hanging on the tree branches. We could put our pictures, and Sam, and Gabe. And we’d add if Sam ever has pups, or Gabe. And our pup. Can we do a family picture when it’s born? Nine months from now is what, around February? The doctor didn’t give me a due date, so I’m thinking we can do spring pictures. Maybe newborn ones once it’s here, and then spring ones later?” Cas looked up at Dean, who smiled and nodded.

“Absolutely. I was also thinking about something.” Dean traced his fingers lightly over the hand Cas had pressed to his chest.

“What about?” Cas asked.

“I know it’s an antiquated ceremony and more for show than anything, but…I’d like to marry you, Cas. I want you to be my husband as well as my mate. And I’d like to do it before our pup is here, so maybe we can take some pictures together before you start to show.”

The blue of Cas’ eyes began to shimmer with new tears. “You…want to marry me?”

“Yes, I do. Very much so,” Dean replied. Cas smiled and leaned in to kiss him.

“I’d be honored to be your husband, Dean.”

“So that’s a yes?” 

Cas smiled wider, nodding before kissing Dean again. “Yes, darling, I’ll marry you.”

Dean’s heart swelled at hearing Cas call him “darling.” The man didn’t use pet names often, if ever, so this made it even more special.

“I’m doing this backwards, but I promise I’ll get a proper engagement ring. I’ve actually been looking, and I found one I really like. I just have to go back and buy it.” 

Cas hummed contentedly as he laid his head against Dean’s chest again. He felt safe and loved in that moment, more than he ever had since coming to live here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are always welcome, you all know I love them. I hope you liked this chapter. I love you guys, I truly do!


	19. Back at Gabe's

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mostly some domestic fluff, Dean talks with his brother and with his mate. Cas makes a nice gesture towards his Alpha, to show how much he cares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

Unable to avoid their brothers anymore, they headed back to Gabe’s. They’d arranged for their new furniture to arrive at their house the next day, and Alan’s men were set to accept the delivery at the door and place the furniture in the rooms themselves once it arrived. Until they could get settled in back at home though, they were stuck at Gabe’s.

Alan led the way, silencing the alarm as they walked in. Cas had bags with new clothes that he didn’t want to leave at their house until they had the furniture to put it all in, so he disappeared into the bedroom with his bags while Dean grabbed his laptop and settled on the couch. The house was quiet, which told him that both Gabe and Sam were out. He took the opportunity to check and make sure all the inventory for all the shops had been completed and that the shop in East Chicago was caught up with the new changes now that Gordon was gone. Dennis appeared to be efficient and not only was the inventory completed, he had sent Dean a list of everything Gordon had ripped off in the last twelve months. It infuriated Dean to see that the bastard had cost him more than thirty thousand dollars. Cas came out of the bedroom holding a tiny sleeper. Dean looked up at him, smiling when he saw the tiny pajamas. This one had tiny bumble bees and little beehives all over it. Cas had picked it out, and Dean had found the matching hat for it.

“Work getting to you?” Cas asked.

“Yeah. I got the new reports from Dennis up in East Chicago. Do you know Gordon stole more than thirty thousand dollars? I’ll be passing this along to my lawyer to add to the charges. Charges were already filed, but he wanted as close to an exact amount as possible.” Dean patted the seat next to him and Cas sat down.

“Is that the one you want to bring the pup home in?” he asked. Cas looked down at the tiny sleeper and smiled.

“I’m not sure yet. I think so. It will be cold, so I’d like to dress him or her in something warm. Do you think…” Cas turned a bit so he could face Dean. “You could buy me some yarn? My great aunt taught me how to knit and how to crochet, and I’d like to try and make a blanket to bring our pup home in.”

“Sure. Tell me when you want to get some and we’ll go get it,” Dean replied.

“What if I took Alan and went to get some now? Would that be alright? You’re working, and I’d like to take a few minutes and maybe get a couple of books with patterns and the necessary yarn.”

Dean looked over at Alan, who was sitting quietly in the corner reading a book. The bodyguard looked up at the sound of his name.

“I can take him. It’s not a problem. I have Felix and Mel outside still.” 

Dean turned his attention back to his mate. He dug out his wallet and opened it.

“Here, I got this one for you. Get whatever you want.” He handed over a credit card with Cas’ name on it. Cas kissed his cheek before getting up.

“Alan, what do you think, should I bring the pup home in this one or wait to find out if it’s a girl and have Dean pick up a dress?” Cas held the sleeper up and the bodyguard got up from his chair, walking over to see the pattern.

“This is really cute. I’d bring the pup home in this, regardless.”

Cas smiled. “That’s what I thought too. Give me a moment to put this back and grab my shoes.” 

He left and Dean let out an annoyed sigh when he opened the inventory email for one of the stores in California. “Why can’t they adhere to my system?” he mumbled. Cas returned and kissed Dean once more before he and Alan walked out the front door. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean was still working through his emails, chatting online with Charlie as he forwarded her any lists that looked odd or had numbers that were off. It was getting much too difficult to handle things the way they used to. With nearly four hundred shops to deal with, he and Charlie were struggling to keep up with the inventory and accounting. Their accountant had a staff under him that helped keep the books balanced and for more than a year now Dean had been thinking that Charlie needed her own staff under her, people that could be sent out to whatever shop was in trouble or in suspicion of screwing Dean over. He found a pad of paper and a pen in a drawer in the kitchen and he began jotting down notes. Tomorrow he would call Chuck and arrange for a meeting with Charlie and a few other people and see about hiring on some more staff.

When the front door opened an hour later he didn’t bother looking up from the computer. He could hear his brother and Gabe talking as they walked in. 

“Dean, you back?” Sam called out.

“In here,” he responded.

Sam walked into the living room and Dean smiled seeing the bandages were finally off his hands. The bruises had faded and he looked good, save for a thin scar on his chin and swollen knuckles. He sat down on the couch.

“Working?”

“Trying to catch up on a few things. I got the report from Dennis for East Chicago. Gordon stole over thirty thousand from me. I’ve decided it’s time to employ more staff. Things are getting to be too stressful with just Charlie and myself trying to watch over all the shops, so I’m calling a meeting this week to see about hiring a staff that will report directly to Charlie. People that can go out and do the necessary inspections and help deter further theft and embezzlement,” Dean explained.

“About time you did that. I know Charlie doesn’t date much because she doesn’t have the time to, and you need to take time for your mate and your growing family, so it makes sense to hire on more people. I’m sure Charlie will be extremely grateful.” Sam said.

“Hey, where’s Cas?” Gabe asked, popping his head in the room.

“He’s out shopping for yarn. He wants to make a blanket,” Dean replied.

“You let him go alone?” 

“Of course not. Alan is with him.” Dean looked up at the other Alpha. “And I’m not feeling anything unusual coming through the bond. He’s very content and happy right now.”

Gabe nodded, accepting that before walking away.

“How was Tampa?” Sam asked. “I saw you guys and the press conference. Jody set up a hotline to take calls regarding tips on the location of Alistair and the others. But how was the expo? Did you find stuff for your pup? Any furniture?”

Dean pulled out his phone and showed his brother the pictures of the furniture they had chosen.

“I really like that crib, it’s nice. Have you gone to check in at the house yet? How bad was my room?” Sam asked.

“Yours was one of the least damaged. I arranged for your room to be cleaned, top to bottom and your mattress to be replaced. My room and the nursery were the worst. We’re replacing everything in both rooms,” Dean replied.

“I am looking forward to going home and sleeping in my own room. I miss my stuff,” Sam said with a laugh.

“I don’t have any stuff to miss, not anymore,” Dean joked.

“But it’ll be nice to sleep in your own room and cook in your own kitchen, I’m sure,” Sam pointed out. Dean nodded. “Yep. Say, do you want to see what Cas picked out at the expo for the pup? There was a place selling clothes and other stuff and once he spotted the tiny sleepers and stuff I couldn’t pull him away.” He laughed as he closed the laptop and got to his feet. He needed a break anyway. Sam stood up too.

“Sure.”

Dean left the laptop on the couch and headed to his room. Sam followed. The myriad of pup clothing they had bought was all neatly folded and sitting on the bed, waiting for Cas to come back and store it. He motioned for Sam to sit down on the bed with him and one by one they looked through everything.

“I think this one is adorable.” Sam held up a blue sleeper with little white clouds that had puppies sleeping on the clouds.

“Cas wants to bring the pup home in this one.” Dean held up the one with the bumblebees.

“Oh, that’s really cute!” 

Dean showed him all the little booties and socks they had bought and told him about his idea for the growth chart and Cas’ idea for the family tree. 

“That’s a really cute idea. Maybe my friend Lauren can help with the murals. She has a degree in art and is a painter. Now she’s getting her degree in law. Art didn’t pan out for her like she’d hoped,” Sam said.

“I’d like to see some of her work, to see if it suits the style I’m envisioning, or what Cas wants. Bring her by some time once we’re home.”

“Dean?”

They heard the alarm and the front door closing. 

“In here with Sam!” he called back.

“Help?”

Dean and Sam both went to see what was happening.

“Honey, what is all this?” Dean asked when he saw his mate loaded down with bags. Alan was standing behind him with a box that when Dean took a closer look, he saw it contained a sewing machine. Cas looked up worriedly.

“I’ll pay for it all, I didn’t mean-”

Dean reached up to take the majority of the bags from his mate while Sam grabbed a couple more.

“Honey, it’s ok. You don’t have to apologize for spending money. I just want to know what all of this is for.” 

“Well, I didn’t know what yarns to use, or where to get started since it had been so long. A saleslady came to help and she told me what yarns would be nice and helped me figure out a good pattern to use but then I mentioned that I’d like to make something for you and she asked me what kinds of things you liked and I really, really wanted to try my hand at sewing, so she suggested I make you a blanket for my first time and I sort of picked out this.”

Cas had been rambling and Dean was trying to keep up but when his mate pulled a piece of black material from one of the bags and he saw the little cars printed all over it, his eyes widened.

“Baby, are those…”

“Yes, Dean. They actually had fabric with antique Chevys on there, and I just had to get it. I-I can’t make clothes, I don’t know how, but the nice lady explained that I could make this fleece on the other side, and then it would be a nice throw blanket for you, and I thought with everything you’ve done for me, I wanted to do something nice for you, and I can’t freaking cook...”

Dean shut him up with a kiss. When they parted Cas was grinning.

“The fact that you want to do something for me, and that it comes from your heart? That means the world to me,” Dean told him.

“Where do you want this?” Alan asked, holding up the sewing machine.

“Just put it in our room,” Dean said. Sam had already put the bags he’d taken in the bedroom and come back to pull the ones Dean had from his hands and take those too. With his hands empty, Dean pulled Cas into his arms.

“I love you,” he whispered softly against Cas’ ear.

“I love you, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave me a comment, I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	20. Crossroads

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam and Dean have a talk about where things are leading between Sam and Gabe. Sam is scared and Dean tries to reassure him.
> 
> Cas' pregnancy hormones kick in again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's some smut. I know you all must think I've been lacking as of late. Enjoy!

After that Dean went into the kitchen to start dinner. Sam wandered in to help. Cas went to their room to try working on the blanket. Gabe had gone to his room and they hadn’t seen him since. Dean pulled fish and chicken from the fridge and held them up.

“I heard that fish can be dangerous for pregnant people. Is that true?” he asked.

“How do you plan to cook it? Not sushi, right?” 

Dean gasped. “Shit! I fed Cas sushi when we went to Chicago!”

“It’s ok, Dean. If he was going to get sick from it, he would have already. And yes, he can have fish as long as it’s cooked completely and he doesn’t eat too much,” Sam said.

“So, salmon for dinner?” Dean held up the package of fish.

“Sounds good to me.”

Dean prepared the salmon while Sam prepared a salad. They peeled and sliced potatoes before seasoning them and popping them in the oven. 

“So…you were out. _With_ Gabe?” Dean asked. He looked up in time to see his brother duck his head.

“Yeah. He invited me out for lunch.”

“Was it a date?” Dean was curious. 

“Yeah, I think it was,” Sam replied.

“What does that mean?”

Sam shrugged.

“I called Jess yesterday. Asked her if we could get together. I wanted to see where we stand. Apparently we are not standing together. She’s been busy with school and friends. And apparently her new friends, the ones I haven’t met that she’s been spending the majority of her time with? They didn’t even know I existed. When she didn’t answer, I got Felix to go with me over to her house. I was…horny. I wanted to see her. She was on a freaking date with some Alpha. Had him over at her apartment and was having a get together with those friends. I said screw it and came back here. I was upset, hurt, and I just wanted to be alone. Gabe, he wouldn’t let me be alone. He didn’t want to see me like that. We talked, and he told me about his ex, the mother of his son. I told him about Jess, and what happened when I went over there. He asked me out to lunch today. I…said yes. It was pretty chill, no pressure, he didn’t touch me or do anything douchey. I actually wasn’t nervous or stressed out at all.”

Dean leaned back against the counter and looked at his brother.

“How do you feel about him?”

Sam went to the doorway and peeked down the hall. Gabe’s bedroom door was still closed. He went back to his spot by the island.

“I’m still confused. I like him but I’m scared. I don’t want to want an Alpha. The only Alpha I trust explicitly is you. I don’t know that I _can_ trust another one as much as I trust you. This whole thing, it just makes my head hurt. My heart says one thing, my head says another, and my body says something else entirely. I don’t know what to do.”

Dean nodded as he listened. “Ok, so I’m guessing your brain is telling you to run screaming, that Alphas mean trouble, right?”

Sam nodded in agreement. “Exactly.”

“And your body is screaming for release. For mating?” 

Sam winced but nodded again.

“And your heart wants you to give him a chance,” Dean guessed.

“Yeah, pretty much,” Sam sighed. He ran a hand through his hair and turned to look out the window. 

“Well, I can’t make the decision for you. All I can do is give advice. I think Gabe is a good guy. I don’t think he’s a douche at all. Yes, he’s looking for a mate, he’s all but made that crystal clear, but you don’t have to sign up for that role tomorrow. Date him, see how you two click, and see how he handles things that would have set your ex off. Look for the triggers. I’m pretty sure he’ll pass with flying colors. Not every Alpha is going to be a cruel asshole. In fact, most of them aren’t bad at all. Personally, I think you should give him a chance.”

“Give who a chance? Is dinner ready? I’m starving,” Cas said as he walked into the kitchen.

Dean looked at Sam. It was up to him to tell Cas however much he wanted to.

“Uh, can I talk to you about that later?” Sam asked the Omega. Cas nodded.

“Sure.”

“Dinner will be done in about twenty minutes. How is the blanket coming along?” Dean asked. Cas’ face lit up.

“Come here, I’ll show you. It’s going to be so soft!” 

Dean smiled at his brother before following his mate back to the bedroom. There was yarn and knitting needles spread across the bed and Cas went over to it, picking up the needles. The start of a blanket was hanging between them. He’d really gotten a lot farther than Dean had expected. 

“I like the color, is that peach?” Dean touched the part Cas had completed. “Wow, it is soft.”

“Right? I want to do the center in peach and maybe do cream along the edges. I think it will be beautiful when it’s finished. If I can remember how, I want to try and make a hat and booties to match,” Cas said proudly.

“You’ll figure it out. I want pictures of it all when it’s finished, and when our pup is here, I want pictures of it wrapped up in this.” Dean sat down on the edge of the bed and picked up the fabric Cas had picked out to make him a blanket with. It made him smile, and he didn’t care if he looked foolish. The fact that his mate wanted to do something for him made him feel so incredibly loved. Cas had set down the blanket and moved onto the bed so that he was able to wrap his arms around his mate from behind. He kissed the back of Dean’s neck, making him shiver.

“I can’t believe you found fabric with my car on it. This is amazing. I fully intend to show this off to everyone, you know.” Dean turned his head so he could look at Cas.

“Y-you don’t have to do that.” Cas buried his face against Dean’s neck in embarrassment. Dean set the fabric aside before turning to pull Cas into his arms.

“I want to, because I’m proud.” He placed a hand over Cas’ belly. His need to protect his mate was intense.

“I did some thinking today, Dean,” Cas said as he laid his head against his Alpha’s shoulder.

“About what, angel?” Dean asked.

“I think I want to take next school year off. I’m going to be delivering this coming winter, and I would really like to spend some time after our pup is born at home. Ideally, I’d like to spend at least a year with our child, to bond and just enjoy having a pup. But I do want to go back to work eventually.”

“Anything you want, sweetheart. I did some thinking today too. I decided to hire some more people to work under Charlie. People that I can send out to investigate discrepancies with inventory or the accounting, and to handle any issues with the shops themselves and equipment. It will cut down on my need to travel so that I can be home more with you and our pup. So if you go back to work, I’ll be home. I’d rather our kids be raised by us than nannies,” Dean said.

“I like that. My parents were wealthy but my father expected my mother to care for us by herself, and she did the best she could. Older siblings were expected to help with the younger ones, to watch out for them and keep them out of trouble. My father had very little involvement in our lives when we were little. It makes me happy knowing that you want to be active in helping to raise our pup. I feel safe, and secure. And I think I want more pups later on.” Cas pulled back the collar of Dean’s shirt and nuzzled at the mating mark. Dean pulled him closer so he could do the same in return.

“Dean, I need you,” Cas whispered. 

“I can tell, baby, but I’d really like to feed you and the rest of the family first.” Dean rubbed his mate’s back and tried to lift him and set him on the bed next to him but Cas latched onto him, whimpering when he tried to move him.

“Ok, honey. I do need to at least tell Sam to take the food out of the oven, and to save some for us,” he said. Cas let out a cross between a growl and a whimper but he released Dean.

“Hurry,” he begged.

“I will, just give me a couple minutes.” Dean got up and turned back to his mate.

“Take a minute to put your knitting away? I don’t want one of those needles stabbing me.”

Cas laughed and nodded. “Alright. Now go.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean went to the kitchen where Sam was sitting at the kitchen table with his laptop. He looked up, grimacing when his brother walked in.

“Ugh, you stink.”

“Gee, thanks. I came to tell you that it’s up to you to pull dinner from the oven. Save some for Cas and me, ok? We’ll be out later,” Dean said as he opened the oven to check the food.

“Fine. Go, get out of here before Gabe gets ideas,” Sam said, waving him off.

“Ideas about what? Oh, whew!” Gabe fanned the air in front of his face and wrinkled his nose as he walked into the kitchen. “Dang, Cas’ hormones going nuts again?”

“Yep. Save us some food, he’s going to be downright ravenous later,” Dean told him.

“How about I make something for dessert? A little extra, maybe something with fruit?” Gabe offered.

“That would be great. How about apples, cored and stuffed with brown sugar and cinnamon? They don’t take long, and they’re delicious.” Dean’s stomach rumbled just thinking about it.

“Sounds good. I think that will solve both his sweet tooth and his craving for fruit.” 

He left the kitchen and headed back to the bedroom. The smell of horny Omega filled the room, and his nostrils flared as he shut the door and turned on the ventilation fan. Cas had cleared the bed, all of the pup’s clothing and knitting were piled high on the long dresser that sat on the other side of the room. He was on his knees, sitting back on his heels wearing nothing but his boxer briefs. His eyes were shimmering gold and they widened when Dean walked in the room. Dean locked the door and walked over to the bed. Cas crawled across the mattress as Dean sat down, and the Alpha pulled him into his lap.

“Hey, gorgeous,” Dean nuzzled against his mate’s cheek. “Your brother’s going to make you something special for dessert. We’ll eat later.” Cas nodded before tilting his head to kiss him. Dean moaned and pressed his fingers into his mate’s hips, kneading the flesh there as Cas opened up to him, letting the Alpha kiss him as deeply as he wanted. He was warm and pliant in his mate’s hands, letting Dean stand up and turn around so that he could be laid out on the bed. He wanted to strip Dean out of his clothes, but he enjoyed watching his mate taking clothes off too. The way his Alpha’s muscles flexed as he pulled his tee shirt over his head and reached down to unbuckle his belt before removing his jeans. Cas licked his lips as his mate shrugged off his own boxer briefs and moved forward. The Omega parted his legs so Dean could drape himself over him. 

“Dean, I need you,” Cas pleaded softly. Dean lowered his mouth to the mating mark, pressing a soft kiss to it and drawing low, needy moans from his mate. He stripped Cas’ boxers off and growled as the scent of slick hit him even harder.

“Fuck, you’re so perfect.” Dean gripped his mate’s hips again, digging his fingers in as he pulled Cas farther underneath his own body so he could rut against him. Cas’ fingers were grabbing at his shoulders, dragging his Alpha back in for another deep kiss. 

Dean was so incredibly content in that moment. His mate was perfect. Cas was everything he could have ever wanted, and this was the best sex he’d ever had in his life. As he sank one finger into his mate and received a pleased moan in response, he felt a surge of protectiveness. Cas was his mate, carrying his pup. As his scent changed Cas eased his desperate grip on his shoulders, bringing his hands to cup Dean’s face.

“Shhh….” Cas placed soft kisses to his Alpha’s face as Dean continued to work him open. He whimpered as he thrust down on the fingers his mate had inside of him, desperate to have his prostate touched. Dean could take a hint though and, curling his fingers, rubbed that spot that had Cas screaming his name as he came in hot spurts between them. 

“Damn, baby, you really needed that release, didn’t you.” There was no mocking in Dean’s words. Cas was learning to read his mate better so he just nodded. Dean’s fingers were still inside of him and he could feel the heat already beginning to coil in his belly for a second time.

“Again?” Dean asked him. Cas blushed and nuzzled into the mating mark on Dean’s neck, making his mate moan.

“Yes, please,” Cas whispered.

Who was Dean to deny his mate?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sweet, fluffy smut. I hope you like this chapter!


	21. A Time for Change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean starts making changes in The District, and he and Cas officially tie the knot. They get some news that will change their lives, and Sam decides to take his relationship with Gabe to the next level.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't get your panties in a twist, you need to wait for the Sabriel until the next update. This is scene building. *Give evil smirk*
> 
> Enjoy the fluff, and I think over all you will very much like this chapter.

Gabe hummed as he prepared the apples. He was aware that Sam was watching him, but he knew not to acknowledge it and make the man feel self-conscious.

“Is Cas going to need extra food?” Sam asked after a few minutes. Gabe glanced back at him for a second before opening the oven door and looking at the food inside.

“Hmm. Maybe? Dean didn’t make nearly enough potatoes I don’t think. Should I make some garlic bread or something to go with this?”

“Garlic bread sounds good,” Sam agreed.

“Want to help?” Gabe asked as he closed the oven door. 

“Ok, sure.” Sam left his computer open on the table and walked over to where Gabe was pulling a bag of garlic bulbs out of a cabinet. “Oh, _real_ garlic? Dean always uses garlic butter. I’ve never had it with real garlic before.”

Gabe pointed to a cabinet near Sam. “I infuse my own oils, too. Grab the one in there labeled garlic.”

Sam grabbed it, handing it over. Together they made their own homemade garlic butter and smeared it across thick slices of Italian bread. It smelled divine and made the Beta’s stomach rumble in anticipation. Gabe popped the bread in the oven before he began moving the things they had used to the sink to be washed. Sam put away the butter and oil. When he was finished he turned to face Gabe who was back to stuffing the apples again.

“Hey, uh, can we talk for a minute?”

Gabe set the corer down at the sound of the strain in Sam’s voice. The Beta’s scent had changed too, reflecting his current state of distress.

“Are you ok? You’re not in pain, are you?” the Alpha asked. Sam shook his head.

“Uh, no, pain’s all but gone at this point.” He flexed his fingers for emphasis. Gabe nodded, satisfied that at least it wasn’t pain causing his scent to change.

“Ok, good. What’s on your mind then?”

“What, um, is it that you want from me?” Sam asked. Gabe arched one eyebrow as he studied Sam. Damn the man was beautiful. His thoughts went to his conversation a few days earlier with Dean about how his last Alpha had treated him. Sam was scared, and with good reason.

“Well, for starters, nothing you aren’t willing to give. I don’t believe in submission or forcing someone to bend to my will. I like a challenge and someone I can see eye to eye with. Well, figuratively speaking. You’re a freaking giant,” Gabe smirked, his smile growing wider when the corners of Sam’s mouth twitched upwards.

“Oh, ha ha.” Sam rolled his eyes and snorted.

“But seriously. I’m not a dick. I’ve never risen a hand to a partner. I know some of what happened to you with your former mate and honestly? It sickens me that someone would think it was ok to do that to another human being. I’d have probably killed him if I knew who he was. I have no intentions of doing anything like that, Sam. I’m not him, and I’m guessing I’m probably nothing like him anyway. I know it’s a lot to ask for you to trust me, but I would like it if you would at least give me a chance.” Gabe was putting himself out there, exposing himself and leaving it up to Sam. The Beta could crush his heart or he could open up and let him in. It made him extremely nervous not knowing in which direction Sam would take things. For a long time Sam just stood there, lost deep in thought about what he wanted, what he needed, and where Gabe fit in to all of that. What he kept coming back to was Dean’s words. That Gabe was good and that he should give him a chance.

“Ok,” he said finally. Gabe had returned to stuffing the apples, but he set down a spoonful of brown sugar so that he could look at Sam again.

“Ok? Care to elaborate for the thoroughly frightened over here?”

Sam’ brown knit and he tilted his head. “Frightened? Of what?”

Gabe did something Sam had never seen another Alpha do; he dropped his gaze in submission. “That you’ll reject me.”

Ah. Sam understood that. The poor Alpha had already been rejected by one mate. If he’d done that too it would have destroyed the man. He took a few tentative steps closer and placed a hand on the Alpha’s arm.

“No, I’m not rejecting you. But…I’m wary. I need time. I can’t be forced into anything I’m not ready for. Sometimes I still…have flashbacks. Dean doesn’t know that. I won’t burden him with it. I may be healed physically but the emotional damage is still there. It probably always will be. I need your patience and understanding. If I can have that then maybe this can work out.”

Gabe nodded so hard he looked like a bobble head doll, and it made Sam smile.

“Of course I’ll give you time! You’re in the lead here, Sam, not me. Ok?”

Sam took a deep breath and exhaled, his smile widening. “Good. Now, I think I would like to kiss you. Is that ok? Nothing else though, I-I’m not ready.”

“Of course. Like I said, I’m not pushing you into anything you aren’t ready for.” Gabe reached out to take Sam’s hand. He traced the joints of the Beta’s fingers where only a week before they’d been broken and bent. He wanted to make sure that no one ever hurt this beautiful man again. When he looked up he saw how close Sam was. It was ridiculous how tall the Beta was, and he had to tilt his head back as Sam put an arm around his waist and pulled him in for a kiss. It was soft and sweet, nothing like his ex-girlfriend’s kisses had been like. When Sam pulled back he fought the urge to chase his lips and kiss him harder. 

“Need help with the apples?” Sam asked.

“Sure. Can you grab the cinnamon?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gabe and Sam ate dinner together and retired back to the Alpha’s room to watch a movie together so the kitchen was empty when Dean and Cas finally made their way in for their own dinner.

“Oh, Dean! It smells like garlic!” Cas exclaimed. Dean turned to look at him, unsure whether that was a happy declaration or one of disgust but the smile on his mate’s face told him he was glad. Dean found their food was still warm, and there was fresh garlic bread to go with it. Good, he knew Cas had worked up an appetite. He handed a piece to his mate who immediately tore into it.

Dean filled up two plates with food and carried them to the table while Cas got them glasses of water to go with dinner. They sat next to one another, their legs tangling under the table as they smiled at one another throughout the meal. When their plates were empty he noticed Cas looking around.

“Are you still hungry?” Dean asked.

“Yes, actually. I’m not used to this, it’s going to take some getting used to. Being hungry, yes, I’m used to a gnawing hunger always being there, sort of like white noise, but these last few months? Having enough food to fill my belly and _still_ being hungry? That is a bit alarming,” Cas admitted.

“Honey, you’re eating for two, and your body is still trying to catch up and get back to where it’s supposed to be weight wise. Of course you’re going to be hungry. How does dessert sound?” Dean got up and went to the oven. The apples smelled like absolute heaven. He smiled when he saw that Gabe had made two just for Cas. He transferred two onto smaller plates and carried them back to the table.

“What are these? They smell heavenly,” Cas asked, his eyes lighting up as Dean set a plate in front of him.

“When we were kids and wanted a sweet treat Ellen would give us these rather than candy or junk food. It’s an apple stuffed with cinnamon and sugar. The sugar caramelizes in the oven, and they’re absolutely delicious.” Dean dug into his own, glancing over every now and then to see Cas eating his own. The Omega ate slowly, savoring the flavors, smiling at his mate each time he saw Dean watching him.

“This is really good,” he said when he was halfway finished.

“Are you still hungry?” Dean asked. Cas shrugged.

“Yes, but it’s down to a bearable level now.”

“There’s another apple for you, and there’s more garlic bread if you want it.” Dean retrieved the second apple and set it on Cas’ plate just as he finished off the first one. The Omega dug in eagerly and Dean smiled, a sense of pride filling him up at the sight of his mate so happy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was only four days more before they were able to move home again. Cas hummed as he folded all the pup’s clothing and transferred it to the suitcases Dean had purchased just for them, and he concentrated on getting the rest of their stuff moved back to the house along with the new stuff they had purchased, like Cas’ new sewing machine. There was a small room off the kitchen, a sort of sunroom with full light that he felt would work beautifully as a sewing room. He intended to buy some furniture soon for it so Cas could be comfortable in there as he worked.

The new beds had been delivered and set up, and the crib was in the nursery when they arrived at the house. Sam followed them up the stairs and into the room that would soon hold his niece or nephew. He smiled as he looked around.

“I like the crib, you guys have great taste,” he said.

“We still need to paint, and put up the mural,” Cas murmured as he rubbed absently at his belly. Dean had a measuring tape and was checking the length of the wall near the bathroom door.

“Have you ordered more furniture yet?” Sam asked them.

“Not yet. We need to find something that will complement the crib,” Dean replied.

“I know a guy that makes handcrafted furniture. He may have some readymade pieces you guys like. Hold on.” Sam left to get his laptop that he had deposited on his new bed before following his brother and Cas into the nursery. He returned, turning the laptop so they could see.

“Oh, those are beautiful.” Cas traced his fingertips lightly across the screen as he looked at a white armoire and matching dressers.

“I have to admit, that’s really nice. I think that would go nice with the crib. These are already available?” Dean asked as he looked through some more of the furniture currently for sale.

“If it has a number at the bottom of the screen that says anything but zero, he has it on hand to sell. So these…” Sam scrolled down a bit to check, “are available. And he delivers.”

“Is he local? Can we go and see his work?” Cas asked.

“Yeah, he and I went to college together a few years back. He went for business. After graduation we stayed in touch. The desk in your office, Dean? He made that,” Sam said.

“Oh, I love that desk. He does great work then. That was one of the few pieces that wasn’t thoroughly ruined.” Dean looked at his mate, who nodded.

“It is a lovely desk. If…we don’t like the new furniture, can we sell it? Get something different?” Cas asked him.

“Sure, or just find another room to place the pieces. If we have more pups later I’m thinking we’ll need to add a few rooms on anyway.” Dean rubbed his mate’s back gently as they scrolled through more pages of furniture.

“This, I want this!” Cas cried and pointed at a large armoire that had intricate-looking carvings on the front that were designed to look like branches. Dean smiled. It would tie in with a forest theme if they decided to go that route. And with the growth chart he wanted and the family tree Cas wanted…

Yes, the armoire would work perfectly.

“He makes dollhouses and train set ups too,” Sam said. Cas’ blue eyes lit up at that.

“Really? Like a train table with the running trains and everything?”

Sam nodded. “He can make anything you want. If you want a playset later on for your pups, he makes wonderful ones, designed any way you want.”

Cas was so happy and excited that it made both Dean and Sam smile. They both felt that he should always feel that way. Sam left them to go and unpack his own stuff and Dean led his mate to their room to show him the furniture they had agreed on for their room. Cas loved it and immediately went about unpacking their things. Dean took the pup’s bags and put them in the nursery closet. Once they had all the furniture in that room they would unpack and get things ready. They had time though.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas’ students were excited to learn that he was expecting a pup. Some had suspected it but with their lesser sense of smell most hadn’t picked up on the change in his scent yet. They were all upset to hear that he would be taking at least a year off to spend time with his pup. He knew he would miss his kids. The idea of possibly tutoring the following school year came to mind, and he wanted to talk to Dean about that. On the last day of school he stood side by side with Meg wishing the children a fun and happy summer as tears streamed down his face. Now that it was officially summer break he looked forward to relaxing and working on the blanket and other things he wanted to make for his pup. Harvey, another bodyguard, was responsible for bringing him to and from work and they had become somewhat friends and they chatted on the trips about Cas’ classes and what he was teaching. Harvey’s oldest son was an Omega and also a teacher, though he taught math. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean took more time off work as he worked with the governor and the city planning committee to go over his renewal and revitalization plans for The District. Cas was never once told he couldn’t come and sit in on the process, and Dean often pulled him into the conversations, asking his opinion and even for his advice. He argued with the committee, a panel consisting of solely Alphas and Betas, that no one would know what was best for the people in The District than an Omega who had lived there half his life. It was hard logic for them to argue with and when the governor herself stepped in to agree with Dean, they all conceded and actually began to listen to Cas.

The first change Cas insisted needed to take place was to eliminate the places that were dangerous to the Omegas, like the brothels and strip clubs. They were horrible places where Omegas were tortured and forced into what equated to slavery. Every Omega that lived there was terrified of ending up in one of those places. He argued that getting rid of prostitution itself would be detrimental to the people that were desperate to feed themselves and their children. First other sources of income needed to be provided before they could get rid of the prostitution altogether. Dean listened with pride to his mate. Cas was brilliant and had the most amazing ideas, things he would never have thought of on his own. It was clear the man had spent a long time thinking of all the things that would take the hell on Earth he had lived in for so long and turn it into a sanctuary, a safe place for all Omegas. 

“First we revitalize and bring up the entire area. Once it’s thriving and doing well, we work on changing the laws,” Dean explained to him one night. Cas agreed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean and Sam went to help Pam move to a small but clean apartment outside of The District. As a surprise, and at Cas’ request, they had fully furnished the new apartment for her, and she cried when she walked in to see Cas waiting to show her everything. With a suggestion from Dean to Ellen, Pam took over Cas’ former position as a server, and she worked harder than any other employee there to take care of her family and make Ellen happy. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It didn’t take much to shut down the brothel. A call to the mayor and it was slapped with more violations and citations than Eve could possibly pay, and she was arrested and charged on multiple counts of prostitution and sex-work related crimes. It was dizzying and Dean couldn’t even wrap his brain around them all. What he did know was that she had over $300,000 in fines and a laundry list of charges that meant she was not getting out of prison for a long, long time. That was the first step in tearing up Alistair’s little group. Piece by piece Dean bought up every single property in The District. The Alphas that thought they could bully him into paying more were quickly knocked down a peg and begging Dean to buy their property once they were hit with their own violations and fines. Dean moved quickly, using a team of lawyers to handle all the negotiations and sales. He had the governor and now the mayor standing behind him supporting him. The name Winchester soon became the most feared name in the District for other Alphas that were trying to control the Omegas living there, but to the Omegas it became a word synonymous with hope. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In July Dean married Cas. It was a simple and private affair they held in their backyard at home. Cas was thrilled that he could invite the few friends he had, and despite helicopters flying overhead trying to capture pictures of the event, it was peaceful and everything Dean could have ever wanted. Cas officially became a Winchester in name, and he was almost as happy as he’d been the day he and Dean had claimed one another. The pictures taken after the ceremony were exciting and Cas laughed when Dean asked that they take one of him kissing Cas’ belly. He wasn’t showing yet, but he wanted their pup to someday know how truly excited its daddy had been for their arrival, and how happy their papa had been as well. 

Alistair still popped up once in awhile on their radar and had been caught snooping around the house several times, but he was elusive and security couldn’t catch him.

But the dogs Dean had bought from the police station did. Gerald, another of the security staff, unlocked the gates one night when Alistair and Ruby were caught snooping around the back fence and let the dogs loose. It was a silent attack and Ruby barely managed to escape. Alistair was tackled and torn into by the dogs as they wrestled him to the ground. By the time Gerald reached them one dog was dead but two others had Alistair pinned while a third had its teeth clamped around the Alpha’s throat. Dean went outside just as the sirens could be heard approaching. Gerald had Alistair in cuffs, held at gunpoint as they waited for Jody’s men to show up. Shortly after she and her men arrived, the news trucks began to arrive. Cas and Sam came out to see what all of the commotion was and were immediately bombarded with reporters shining lights in their faces and yelling questions at them. Frightened, Cas cried for Dean.

“Dean! DEAN!” 

Sam pushed his brother in law behind himself as he waved at the people with the lights.

“Hey, get that crap out of his face! Why would you startle a pregnant Omega like that? If he loses his pup you _will_ be sued!” Sam snapped. Lights began to shut off while others were turned away but still left on. Dean heard his mate yelling and felt his distress. When he arrived back at the gates the fury was rolling off of him in waves. Cas went to him and he wrapped a protective arm around his mate. The issue had to be handled now or the reporters would never go away, he knew this.

“Alistair, the man that has been stalking my mate for the last few months, has been caught and arrested. His partner Ruby, however, is still at large. In the next day or so I will arrange for another press conference. At that time I will answer any questions pertaining to this matter. I will not, however, answer questions about my personal life. Anyone caught lingering on my property ten minutes from now will be arrested and charged with trespassing, and anyone that films my home or property without my explicit permission _will_ be sued. Have I made myself clear?” Dean’s voice was commanding and though some reporters were still trying to ask questions, most caught on quickly and began leaving. Sam made a few more well placed threats to get the rest to leave and then remained outside with Gerard until the last of their vehicles had left. Only one was stupid enough to try and return, parking at the end of the block and pulling out a camera with a long-range lens, but Gerard’s men quickly got rid of them. Dean had taken his mate back into the house. He placed a call to his lawyers while Cas went up to the nursery. The relief that flooded through him knowing Alistair was no longer a threat was overwhelming, and he took a seat in the rocking chair Dean had purchased special for him. As he rocked he let the tears slip quietly down his cheeks. He was just starting to notice the small changes in his body, starting with a hard lump low in his belly. The first ultrasound a few weeks earlier had not revealed much other than the fact that they were not expecting a single pup, but twins. Dean had been on the phone before they were even out of the doctor’s office ordering doubles of all the furniture for the nursery. With a sniffle he wiped his eyes and looked around. They still hadn’t painted so the mural was not done, nor any of the other things they had planned, but next month Gabe was coming with a crew to handle the painting as an early gift. He pulled the throw blanket he’d picked out on a recent trip off the back of the chair and covered his legs with it as he rubbed again at his belly. 

When Dean came upstairs this was how he found his mate, rocking as he rubbed his belly and sat imagining what the finished room would look like. He sank to his knees in front of his mate and smiled up at him. Cas returned the smile, reaching out to run the fingers of his free hand through his Alpha’s hair.

“Are you alright, sweetheart?” Dean asked.

“Oh, yes. It’s strange, the relief I feel. Alistair can’t hurt me; he can’t hurt my pups. I don’t think I’ve ever fully felt so…relieved.” Cas was trying to explain but despite being a teacher, the proper descriptive words were escaping him. Still, Dean understood. He pushed his mate’s legs apart and scooted closer. Recently his favorite thing to do was to nuzzle against Cas’ belly and he pulled his mate’s shirt up so that he could do exactly that. Cas purred, content to have his mate close, and Dean purred in response, letting his eyes drift closed as he breathed in his Omega’s scent. That was how Sam found them a little while later, his brother and brother in law both with their eyes closed and soft, contented smiles on their faces. 

“Hey, guys? I hate to interrupt but Jody just told me they caught Ruby. Alistair, however, is being taken to the hospital. The dogs tore him up pretty bad,” he said. Dean’s eyes opened and he looked up at his brother. Cas simply murmured in acknowledgement.

“They’re keeping a guard on him, right?” Dean asked.

“Of course, but Jody wanted you to be aware of what was going on,” Sam replied.

“Thanks, Sammy.” 

Sam left them and headed to his own room. He was texting Gabe the good news when one of the dogs came walking in. A quick glance at the pink leather collar told him this was Bailey. He held out a hand and she walked over, sitting down next to the bed and letting him rub her head and ears. 

Sam: Hey, they caught Alistair and Ruby.

It didn’t take long before Gabe replied.

Gabe: That’s fantastic news!

Sam: We lost one of the dogs though, Alistair clawed her to death. Still have Bailey and Boomer. Sadie is dead.

Gabe: Oh, that’s awful, Sadie was Cassie’s favorite. How is he?

Sam: Relieved. Happy. He doesn’t know about the dog yet, neither does Dean. I’ll tell my brother later and let him break it to Cas when he thinks he’ll best be able to handle it.

Gabe: Good idea. Are you up for some company? Want to come over?

Sam smirked. So far Gabe had been an absolute gentleman and always kept his hands to himself. 

Sam: Why don’t you come over here? We can watch a movie.

They had an equal relationship in that sometimes he went to Gabe’s and sometimes Gabe came over to see him. 

Gabe: I can be there in twenty. Want me to bring anything?

Sam thought for a moment.

Sam: Wine? If you want.

He knew what that insinuated. He wasn’t ready to be claimed but hell, he had needs, and he was sure Gabe did as well.

Gabe: Wine? Ok, I can do that. Any particular requests?

Sam: White. I’ll let you decide which one though.

Gabe: Ok, make it thirty and I’ll be there.

Sam set the phone aside and turned his attention to Bailey. She leaned her head on his thigh and looked up at him with big, brown eyes. Boomer was no doubt downstairs still, lying on his bed by the sliding doors in the kitchen. Dean had tried to set the dog beds up in the den but Boomer had actually dragged his bed into the kitchen and set it right by the doors so he could lay there and watch over the yard. Bailey lifted her head, her ears perking up at the sound of something moving in the hall. When she didn’t growl Sam knew it was either Cas or Dean. A moment later Dean was popping his head in the open doorway.

“Hey.” He spotted Bailey and smiled. She walked over, sitting at his feet and he scratched her head.

“Hey, pretty girl,” he said. Her tail swished lightly across the carpet. Dean turned his gaze back to his brother. “Where are Boomer and Sadie?”

Sam sat up in his bed. “Um, Sadie…didn’t make it. Boomer’s downstairs.” Dean’s smile faded.

“What? What the hell happened? I didn’t hear any gunshots.”

“Alistair got his claws in her. She…bled out. They took her body for evidence.” Sam explained. Dean frowned deeply.

“Damn. She was a good dog. Cas is going to take that hard.”

“Yeah, I was thinking the same thing,” Sam said with a sigh.

“I’ll tell him in the morning. I’d like him to at least have one night where he can be completely relaxed and happy.” Dean rubbed Bailey’s ears before dropping his hand to his side.

“Um, Gabe’s coming over in a bit,” Sam said. Dean raised one brow and smiled.

“Oh yeah? You guys doing ok? Seems like you are.”

“We’re doing great, or at least I think we are. I’m not letting him claim me though. Yet.” Sam felt his cheeks heating up and Dean knew better than to tease him, even though he really wanted to.

“But you’re considering it?” he asked. 

“Thinking about it. But first I’m thinking of…you know. How he treats me carries over to that too,” Sam replied.

Dean didn’t want to hear about his brother’s sex life, but he understood his concerns. “If for any reason he mistreats you, he’ll have to face me, but I really don’t think he will. You need condoms? Lube?” He winked and Sam actually barked out a laugh so loud Bailey snapped her head around in surprise at the sound.

“Uh…not lube but condoms, maybe?” Sam was so embarrassed. He wished he’d thought this thing through ahead of time and had stopped to get condoms.

“Hang on, I’ll be right back.” Dean headed to his room. Cas had moved from the nursery to their room and was stretched out on the bed with his knitting. He looked up when Dean walked in, watching as his mate walked around to the other side of the bed and opened the drawer of the nightstand to fish around inside of it.

“What are you looking for?” he asked.

“Condoms,” Dean replied. Not the answer Cas had expected.

“For…Sam?” 

Dean nodded. He found the box and grabbed it.

“Is he going over to Gabe’s?” 

“No, Gabe’s coming over here. I think Sammy’s more comfortable here, on his home turf for their first time. So that I’m nearby in case things go sour,” Dean explained.

“With Gabe? I highly doubt things will go sour but…I understand his wariness. He is wise to be cautious. You know my brother’s in love with him, right?” Cas asked. Dean snorted.

“I think everyone knows he’s in love with Sam.”

Cas chuckled and returned his attention to his knitting. The blanket was almost done, and it was turning out to be beautiful. “Well, I wish them luck. Will Gabe be claiming him?”

“No, not yet. But I don’t think Sam will make him wait for too much longer. Maybe by the time our pups are here. That’ll be about the time he graduates, too,” Dean replied as he started for the door. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Dean carried the box down the hall to his brother’s room. Sam was standing in front of his closet sifting through his clothes.

“What, you need to look good now for Gabe? Pretty sure you could wear a chicken suit and he’d think you were hot,” Dean teased as he tossed the box on the bed. Bailey was still there, lying on the bed now and she sniffed at the box for a moment before losing interest. Sam shot him a dirty look before fishing through his clothes some more. He settled on a burgundy tee shirt and after stripping out of his flannel, he put the tee on.

“I’m going downstairs to wait for him to get here. We’re going to have some wine and then come up to my room to watch a movie.”

The way he said it told Dean that watching a movie was not all that Sam had planned.

“Okay. So, Cas and I will be in our room but if he gets hungry, I will have to go get him food. Just a heads up. I will text you if that’s the case. If you don’t respond and your door is closed I will just assume you guys are… ‘busy’ in there, and I’ll head down to the kitchen. So keep your phone on you,” Dean told him.

“Yeah, ok.” Sam grabbed his phone off the nightstand and Dean gave him one last nod before returning to his room. Cas was no longer in the bed but he could hear water running in the bathroom. The sick scent of throw up carried in to the bedroom through the open door.

“Are you ok?” Dean went to stand in the bathroom doorway as Cas turned off the sink. He grabbed a hand towel and wiped his face.

“I suddenly got nauseous. I feel a little better now though.”

“Good thing I keep the electric tea pot in here. Did you take your anti-nausea medicine? I’ll make you some ginger tea.” Dean stepped into the bathroom and began prepping the tea pot. He kissed Cas’ forehead after he’d taken his pill and was ready to head back to the room. Once it was started he went back to the bedroom to find Cas once again knitting. After pulling a book off the shelf in the corner he stretched out next to his mate to read for a little while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, there are TWO pups in his belly, and I know I tempered that joy with the loss of one of the dogs. I do apologize, but she died doing what she was supposed to do, keep Cas and his pups safe. Don't hate me! 
> 
> I do hope you like this chapter. Leave me a comment. :)


	22. Already There

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam and Gabe take their relationship to the next level.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yes, this here is a Sabriel scene. Enjoy, there will be more (stuff OTHER than smut) coming next chapter. I hope you like this chapter!

Sam paced nervously as he waited for Gabe to show up. He took down two wine glasses in the kitchen and left them on the island before walking into Dean’s office to check the camera monitors. So far there was no sign of Gabe’s car. For the next twenty minutes he walked between the kitchen and the office. When Gabe’s car finally appeared, pulling up to the gates Sam zoomed in the camera. Gabe seemed to sense him and smiled up at it. Sam snorted and hit the microphone.

“I’ll let you in now.”

“Sounds good,” Gabe replied.

Sam hit the button that would open the gate and allow the Alpha’s car in. Once it was through the gate he immediately locked it again. A few minutes later he heard the knock at the front door. He disarmed the alarm long enough to let Gabe in and then reset it. 

“Hey,” he greeted the other man. Gabe was eyeing him as though he wasn’t quite sure what to make of him. He held out a bottle of wine and a pink box that Sam knew was filled with pastries. Sam took them both and nodded for Gabe to follow him to the kitchen.

“So….what’s up with wanting wine? I didn’t even know you drank it. I thought you were like Dean with the beer,” Gabe said when they got to the kitchen and he saw the glasses waiting.

“There’s a lot to learn about me,” Sam said as he set the box of pastries on the counter by the stove. He was sure Dean would see it later, and it would do well for Cas if he ended up hungry later. Gabe sat down at the island and watched as Sam opened the bottle and poured them both a glass. He accepted the one handed to him.

“So are we watching movies?” Gabe asked.

“Yeah, I have a new one that I haven’t seen yet, Jurassic World. Have you seen it? I thought we could just kick back and watch that, and maybe one more. Unless you have to get home early. I figured it’s Friday…” Sam shrugged.

“No, I don’t have anywhere to be. I can stay,” Gabe said quickly, and Sam got the feeling there was more meaning behind those words than just what he was saying. He smiled at the Alpha and tried to shake off the nervousness. 

“So, how are classes? Did you take that test you were talking about last week?” Gabe asked. Sam exhaled and felt some of his tension wash away. He could talk about school, that subject was safe. They talked as they drank their glass and before they poured another, Sam suggested they move the conversation up to his room, in case Dean or Cas came wandering down looking for food. Gabe arched one eyebrow, but he followed the Beta upstairs.

Sam had forgotten to put away the box of condoms and if it wasn’t for the fact that just before they walked into his room, Cas opened the door down the hall and stepped out, drawing Gabe’s attention, it might have been a very embarrassing moment. He dashed into his room and grabbed the box, shoving it in his bedside drawer while Gabe walked over to his brother. When he stepped back into the hall he heard them talking.

“Well if you’re hungry I brought you some donuts and muffins. They’re in a box down in the kitchen,” Gabe was saying.

“No, I just want to put this stuff in the washer. I’m not feeling well this evening,” Cas replied. Sam noticed the wadded up pile of clothes in his brother-in-law’s arms.

“Nausea back?” he asked. Cas nodded.

“It’s better now that I took my pill, but my stomach is still queasy. Dean made me some tea. I’m sure I’ll feel better once I drink some. You enjoy your evening, I’ll see you later.” Cas caught Sam’s eye for a moment before heading to the laundry room. Gabe turned to look at Sam.

“I feel bad for him, this has been a rough pregnancy. I remember our mother being pregnant with our younger siblings but I don’t recall her being quite so miserable.” 

“Everyone’s affected differently. I’m just glad he has the anti-nausea medication to help him, or he’d be losing weight with as much as he throws up,” Sam said as they stepped into his room. Bailey was coming down the hall towards him, but he shut the door before she got there. Gabe was looking around, admiring the bookshelves and the art on the walls. Sam realized this was the first time he had brought the Alpha up here. Before this they had always stayed in the den downstairs. When Gabe spotted the 50 inch television mounted on the wall he smiled.

“Nice. I didn’t picture you as much of a television watching type.” 

“I watch TV, though mostly it’s documentaries or Game of Thrones,” Sam said. He pointed at the loveseat in the corner. His room was large, and Dean had gone out of his way in the beginning to make the space more like a studio apartment than just a bedroom. Sam appreciated it then, and he appreciated it now. This was his space, his sanctuary. Not even Jess had ever been up here. Gabe sat down while Sam put the movie in the DVD player. Grabbing the remote and the bottle of wine, he joined Gabe on the couch. He poured them both a second glass of wine as the movie started and they were getting into the movie, laughing at Chris Pratt and even the kids as they each enjoyed a third glass. At some point that he didn’t recall, Sam ended up with his legs folded up under himself while his upper body was pressed into Gabe’s side, his head resting on the Alpha’s shoulder as they watched Bryce Dallas Howard distract the enormous dinosaur. Gabe’s arm was around his shoulders, fingers lazily dragging through Sam’s hair as he laughed at the one liners the movie seemed to be filled with. Sam was chuckling at the lines too and they both jumped as the dinosaur in the water leapt up, snagging the Indominus Rex. Gabe’s arm tightened around him instinctively before they both relaxed, laughing at their own silliness. 

“That was really good. I haven’t seen the others in years but those are movies that definitely stick with you. This was funny, like the first one was, but with more humor. I’ll have to invest in this one for my collection.” Gabe said as the credits began to roll.

“Dean saw it and told me about it, and I loved the first three. Even if they are way off about the dinosaurs.” Sam was still leaning into Gabe, too comfortable to want to move.

“What, uh, other movie did you want to watch?” Gabe asked.

“I thought I’d let you choose.” Sam pointed at a bookcase in the corner that actually housed several dozen movies.

“Yeah, sure, I’d like that.” 

Neither man made a move to get up.

“Sam?” Gabe’s voice was soft and his scent was filled with something that Sam thought was fear. He lifted his head to look at him.

“Yeah?”

Gabe swallowed but didn’t answer. His scent was becoming more and more distressed and he just wanted to soothe him.

“Shhh, come here.” He brought a hand up to gently take the Alpha’s jaw and turn his head so he could look into his eyes. He could see the fear in those amber eyes just before he leaned in and kissed him. Gabe was always quick to kiss back, as though he were afraid Sam might suddenly change his mind. He resented the Alpha’s ex for doing that to him, for making him feel so vulnerable and unwanted. If anything, they had that in common, mates that hadn’t wanted them. But…he wanted Gabe, and he wanted the man to know that he wanted him. He kissed the Alpha deeply, putting more into that one simple gesture than he had in any previous kiss. His fingers tangled in the button up Gabe was wearing, and he dragged the Alpha closer. Gabe offered no resistance, letting Sam direct him as his own hands made their way tentatively to the Beta’s hips. 

Until this point Sam had not permitted the Alpha to do much more than hold his hand but now he wanted Gabe to touch him, he craved it. He moaned into the Alpha’s mouth as he wrapped his arms around the man’s neck and kissed him even deeper. Gabe wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth though and his touch grew bolder as his fingers slipped under the hem of Sam’s tee shirt to stroke the smooth skin underneath it. Alpha instincts were kicking in and his touch grew more purposeful as he pressed closer, urging the Beta with more passion than Sam had really thought the Alpha capable of. The man seemed so incredibly docile for an Alpha but this was stirring things in Sam now with Gabe taking control like this, and it was turning him on, much more than it ever had with Jess. When the Alpha growled, it was a needy, lust-filled sound resonating through the room. Sam responded with a soft whimper, a sound he hadn’t heard himself make in years, except this time it didn’t scare him to hear Gabe growl. He was trusting this Alpha not to hurt him. Lips tore away from his own, moving to his jaw and then down to his neck as strong hands worked farther under his shirt to brush across his nipples. Sam gasped, arching into the touch. God, it had been too long, he craved this, needed this, but not with just anyone. Gabe was the only Alpha he trusted to take care of him the way he wanted. When he lifted his hips to grind his growing erection against the Alpha, Gabe suddenly pulled back, gasping for air.

“What’s wrong?” Sam asked as he tried to push himself up on his elbows.

“What are we doing here, Sam? Cause I don’t like games,” Gabe replied.

“I don’t either. I’m not playing games here. I-I want you. I….need you, Gabe,” Sam said softly, his tone pleading with the Alpha.

“Just this once? I’m not interested in flings, Sam. You know I want you as my mate.” Gabe looked away, his eyes suddenly shimmery with unspent tears. Sam quickly sat up and took the man’s face in his hands, bringing his eyes back to look at him.

“I am not interested in flings either, Gabe. I want to see how you treat me, not just when I come over to visit, but in all aspects of my life. If you scare me here, where it matters most, then I’ll know for certain that I can’t take you as a mate, but…for some crazy reason, I’m trusting you right now to take care of me the way I need to be taken care of. I…think…I’m falling in love with you, you big idiot. So while I’m not looking for you claim me tonight, I do want it to happen at some point.”

Gabe’s eyes widened as his own hands came up to cover Sam’s. “Yeah?” His voice was so filled awe and surprise, as though he couldn’t imagine that Sam really wanted to be his mate.

“Gabe, I’m not going to change my mind unless you suddenly turn on me. I’m still scared. I need you to show me that I don’t have anything to be scared of.” Sam kissed him again, and this time Gabe was fully on board with it. He grabbed the Beta under his thighs, forcing the man to straddle him as he suddenly stood up.

“Gabe!” Sam cried, caught off guard by the sheer strength the Alpha was demonstrating.

“We’re not having sex on a couch,” Gabe said firmly as he carried Sam over to the bed and gently lowered him. As Sam moved up on the bed to lay back against the pillows, Gabe crawled up on the bed, stalking up it until he was straddling Sam. The Beta’s fingers went to the buttons on his shirt and began undoing them. He yanked it open and pushed it off the Alpha’s shoulders, watching as the man tossed it aside. 

Gabe was surprisingly toned. He always wore loose button down shirts that hid him well from neck to torso, but now? Sam’s hands were itching to explore. He looked up at the Alpha, silently asking for permission and the soft smile he received told him he had it. His hands slid up the Alpha’s belly and over his pecs to brush against the small tuft of hair on his chest. Muscles twitched under his touch, and God if he wasn’t eager to see the rest of the Alpha. He undid the man’s belt and unzipped his pants. Gabe pulled back just long enough to ditch everything he was wearing from the waist down, save for his boxers. Sam smiled when he saw the pattern on them. Little pink and yellow frosted cupcakes floated on the white backdrop, and Sam was pretty sure they were the cutest thing he had ever seen. They totally suited Gabe’s personality. The Alpha gently pushed his hands away before reaching for the hem of Sam’s tee shirt. His eyes searched Sam’s own hazel ones, seeking permission.

“Yes, but I want you to know, my ex-mate, he…left permanent marks,” Sam said. 

“I don’t care, Sam. You may think you’re falling in love with me, but baby, I’m already there. Scars aren’t going to scare me away, ok? I’m not going anywhere,” Gabe told him. Sam nodded and sat up enough that shirt could be pulled over his head. As Sam laid back against the pillows, Gabe saw the first of the scars. Subtle, thin lines scattered across the Beta’s chest and stomach. It angered him to see them. He wished he could kiss each one away. His fingers traced one that actually ran through a tattoo on Sam’s chest, right over his heart. Ignoring the scar, he asked about the tattoo.

“What is this?”

“My brother and I got them when we were in our twenties. They’re symbols of protection. My ex…he didn’t like it. Got mad once and took a broken beer bottle to it,” Sam replied.

“I like it. And I bet you could get it fixed, repaired. This is something that connects you and your brother. No one has the right to take that away from you.” Gabe placed his hand over it.

“I promise I’ll never do anything like this to you. I couldn’t possibly hurt you, Sam.”

His words were so sincere and the love he felt in that moment, Sam caught whiffs of it in his scent. He knew Gabe was speaking the truth.

“Kiss me,” Sam begged as his throat threatened to tighten and bring him to tears. Gabe leaned down, capturing his lips with his own and kissing him deeply. His hands were exploring again and each time they encountered a new scar Sam felt him flinch. He knew it wasn’t in disgust but in anger. He was so angry that someone had hurt the Beta like this. Sam could smell the protectiveness in his scent and it felt good knowing someone _wanted_ to protect him. Someone that wasn’t his brother.

Gabe matched Sam’s eagerness but he kept his touch gentle, letting his fingers linger where they touched the Beta’s skin, letting Sam pull at him, dig his hands into the Alpha’s hips as he pulled him down so he could grind against him. When Gabe’s hands went to his belt and he looked up with a question in his eyes, Sam nodded eagerly.

“Yeah, go ahead.”

Gabe made quick work of Sam’s belt and even quicker work of his pants. Now that they were down to only their boxers, they stopped to look at one another.

“We still a go?” Gabe asked. Sam nodded without hesitation.

“Just no claiming. Not yet.” 

There was a flash of something in the Alpha’s eyes that Sam thought might be hurt, but it was so fast he didn’t get the chance to really evaluate it before the Alpha was smiling and pulling his boxers off. Sam almost had to do a double take. What Gabe lacked in height he more than made up for in other areas. This time, without asking, he pulled Sam’s underwear off and tossed them aside.

“I need lube. I-I didn’t bring condoms. I didn’t realize we’d be doing _this_.” Gabe looked away in embarrassment, but Sam twisted underneath him to reach into the drawer he’d tossed the condoms in, fishing out both the box of condoms and the bottle of lube he normally kept in there. Gabe’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, but he accepted both items as they were shoved into his hands.

Setting the condoms aside, Gabe popped the top on the lube and poured some over his fingers. He smirked when he caught the scent of cherries. Though he was shorter, Gabe wasn’t letting that stop him one bit. His lips found their way back to Sam’s chest and down his stomach as he nudged the Beta’s legs open and with one slick finger began circling the man’s rim.

Gabe had been with a few Betas over the years and if he were being truthful with himself, he actually preferred not only their company, but the sex with them was great. With Omegas he was always on edge, expecting them to leave him for their true mate, and all that did was eventually push them to leave for other reasons. His own true mate, he’d met the man. What a total douche too. He had no interest in pursuing a relationship with someone so incredibly narcissistic and gender biased against Alphas. Gabe didn’t have a chance of convincing the man that he was nothing like whatever Alphas had hurt him in the past. Plus the fact he was still with his son’s mother at the time didn’t help. Later he learned that his true mate had been raped and killed in The District. His heart had ached over his loss, but the man was never his mate and never would have been. That had been ages ago. Since he’d been alone all he wanted was to find that one person, the one he could spend the rest of his life loving and taking care of, orientation be damned. From the first moment he’d laid eyes on Sam in that library and realized how wonderful he smelled, he’d wanted him. Now that he had him, it was taking every ounce of willpower he had to respect Sam’s wish not to be claimed. 

As he worked a second and then a third finger into the Beta he rained words of praise down him, kissing every ounce of skin he could reach. The sounds Sam made, the way his back arched off the bed as he pressed down on the fingers inside him, it drove the Alpha nuts with want. When he started pulling at Gabe and urging him to get on with the show, Gabe happily obliged.

“Give me a sec here, gorgeous,” He said as he withdrew his hand. It took him a moment to get the box of condoms open with slippery fingers and even longer to get one on, but he managed, and as he looked up at Sam he stroked one lubed hand down his own length in preparation. God it had been years since he’d taken a lover and eager didn’t even cover how he felt at the moment. Excited or not, he needed to be gentle with Sam. Sam was watching him, gently stroking the Alpha’s thigh as he waited patiently for him to get himself ready.

“We’re good now?” Sam asked as he watched Gabe rubbing the lube down his condom sheathed length. He hated condoms but he wanted to be careful.

“Yes. Roll over for me, ok?” Gabe asked softly. Sam nodded. Due to the sheer length of his legs he had to sit up completely before he could do that, but he managed, and soon he was on his hands and knees presenting himself. Gabe groaned at the sight. Sam was absolutely the most perfect and beautiful Beta he’d ever laid eyes on. Leaning over and letting his cock rub against the Beta’s hole, he kissed Sam’s back and wrapped his arms around him in a hug. Sam flipped his hair out of the way and looked back at him with a puzzled expression, until he saw the tears in the man’s eyes. 

“It’s ok, Gabe. I’m not going anywhere,” he said. It was a promise that he knew he’d keep. Gabe sniffled and nodded, sitting up straight again. Now he ached to be inside of Sam. Inside of the Beta he wanted more than anything to call his own. 

With a patience and gentleness that surprised even him, Gabe began slowly pushing in. He paid careful attention to every whimper, every gasp Sam made as he slowly pushed his way in. When his hips were flush against the Beta’s backside he let out a long, low groan and draped himself over the man’s back. He needed a moment to compose himself. Sam adjusted himself, pushing back a bit to encourage Gabe to move.

“I’ll be gentle, I promise,” Gabe managed to get out before pulling back almost all the way out. 

Instinct urged him to slam back in, to take his potential mate fast and hard, but logic and desire overruled that. Grabbing Sam’s hips he began a slow, steady rhythm, reveling in the tight heat surrounding him. He let out a moan, loving how good it felt while wishing he could have a million more moments just like this.

“Gabe, please, go faster,” Sam begged. 

Gabe liked to think he was a good Alpha. He picked up the pace until Sam was screaming his name and he was pounding into him with everything he had. With a roar that caught Sam off guard, Gabe suddenly pulled out and grabbed the Beta. In one smooth movement he lifted the man and turned him around to sit him in his lap. He smirked at the look of surprise on Sam’s face before he brought him down, entering him once more and picking up exactly where he’d left off. Sam hung on for dear life, screaming the Alpha’s name as the heat began building low in his belly. His head fell back in ecstasy as he met Gabe on every thrust, pushing down as the Alpha pushed up, meeting in the middle in a sweaty, pleasure-filled grind that was bringing them both close to climax. Gabe’s knot began to swell and Sam moaned, pushing down hard on it as it popped, locking them together. Gabe dropped his forehead to Sam’s shoulder as he came, pulsing hot inside his lover. He noticed Sam’s cock was still hard between them, leaking pre-come, so he grabbed it, stroking it fast as he pulsed a second time inside the man. With a slight twist of his hips he brushed across Sam’s prostate and that was it, he was clenching tight around Gabe as he came in hot spurts. Gasping for air he collapsed against Gabe’s chest.

“Holy shit…”

“Yeah, that was…wow…,” Gabe said with a huffed laugh. He ran his fingers through Sam’s hair. 

“Thank you,” Sam murmured as he tilted his head up so his lips would meet Gabe’s.

“For what?” Gabe asked.

“For not hurting me.” Sam pressed a tender kiss to the Alpha’s jaw, making the man smile. He wrapped his arms around Sam’s back and held him as he buried his face against the Beta’s neck. 

“I love you, Sam. I would never willfully hurt you.”

Sam smiled. He’d never had a lover tell him they loved him.

And mean it.

“I know,” he said. “And I was wrong before.” 

“About what?” Gabe asked.

“I don’t think I’m falling in love with you. I’m already there.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So....yeah. No claim yet (Give Sam time, he isn't quite there with the trust), but they're at the next level for their relationship. I do hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Leave a comment!


	23. On the Horizon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Cas have a talk about the plans for The District and the idea of him becoming mayor. Cas gets the news the next morning about Sadie. He doesn't exactly take it well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't hate me...
> 
> Enjoy the chapter.

“Your tea is ready. Think you can stomach it?” Dean walked into the bedroom from where he’d been prepping the tea in the bathroom and sat down on the edge of the bed next to Cas. After a sudden bout of extreme nausea and throwing up dinner all over himself earlier, the nausea pill seemed to be working. The Omega set down his knitting needles and smiled at his mate.

“Oh, yes. I’m actually hungry now. Gabe said he brought some pastries but I’m afraid to go downstairs, in case they went back down there. I mean, I know they went into Sam's room but if they get hungry...” 

Dean offered the cup of tea to him and pulled out his phone as Cas sipped at the drink.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I have cameras. I can see if the den and kitchen are empty,” Dean replied.

“What does it matter if the den is empty?” Cas cocked his head in confusion.

“They could be in there making out. I don’t want to see my brother with someone’s tongue jammed down his throat,” Dean laughed as he pulled up the cameras. A quick view told him the upstairs hall and all of the downstairs rooms were empty, save for the dogs. Just for good measure he checked around the perimeter. Aside from security staff doing patrols, everything was peaceful and quiet. He wasn’t ready yet for Cas to know they’d lost a dog tonight.

“I’ll go and get you the box, ok? Just relax.” He patted Cas’ thigh before pocketing his phone and heading downstairs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the kitchen Dean hummed softly as he got himself a glass of milk and located the box of pastries. Come morning he’d bring it back down, but he didn’t want to risk bringing just one or two up and Cas not liking what he chose, so it was safer to just bring up the entire box. After grabbing some napkins and putting everything on a tray, he started back up to the bedroom. 

Cas had gone back to his knitting, but he set it aside the moment Dean walked in the room.

“Oh, I have a taste for something apple! I hope he has one of those donuts with the apple filling!” 

Dean opened the box and fished around, checking for an apple filled donut. “I think this is one.” He handed it over and Cas took a bite.

“No, I think this might be peach, but it’s good.”

Dean found an éclair and sat back with it and his glass of milk, turning the television on and channel surfing as they ate. 

“What are your plans tomorrow?” Cas asked as Dean settled on a news report about Alistair’s arrest.

“I’m meeting with some planners in The District. Going to go over some architectural plans for new apartments and a couple blocks of two- and three-bedroom houses. If we take some of the existing buildings, gut them and completely remodel, we can save some money and people will still have places to live. Right now we’re trying not to displace too many families. It’s not safe yet for them.”

“Did you get the police patrols like you had promised?” Cas asked.

“After some research I learned that there is no longer an actual police district for there. It was dismantled in the forties. That’s why cops don’t respond there, and when they do, they’re actually coming in from District Thirteen. I’m working with the mayor to fix that though. We need to get a police presence there, but not without laws being changed, too. Without laws being updated they have the potential to be too lax or to actually bully the people they’re supposed to be protecting.” 

Dean looked over at Cas who was nibbling at a cinnamon encrusted donut. “The governor is thinking it might be good if I ran for a political office.”

Cas lowered his donut and looked at him. “What office?”

“Well, the mayor’s term is up next year, and she says she’ll back me if I run. I still think Sam should be the one to hold an office, cause I don’t know squat about politics, but she thinks I’ll be able to do more if I can command more attention. I personally think I can get all the attention just by talking to the media, but she says I’ll be able to persuade government officials if I’m one of them. What do you think though?” Dean muted the television and looked over at his mate. 

“About you running or about what good do I think you could do? Because I think you can do anything you put your mind to, and I’ll support you a hundred percent. It’s a stepping stone too. You could run for governor next term. Who knows, make enough change and you could someday run for president, though I’m not wearing pillbox hats. They’re totally out of fashion,” Cas deadpanned. Dean looked at his husband in shock until he noticed the corners of his mouth twitch.

“Smartass,” he snorted.

“I do think you could do anything you put your mind to though, and I think you would make a wonderful mayor, and possibly governor later. Perhaps if you move from mayor to governor, Sam can then run for mayor. I believe the Winchesters have the potential to do great things for this state and even this country.” Cas set the box of pastries on the table and finished off his donut. “Don’t doubt your abilities. It’s already clear that you have excellent business sense, and excellent people skills. People like you and are drawn to you. Show them how you treat me, and you’ll earn the votes of Betas and Omegas everywhere. But you’ll have to push for the Omegas to vote. Most don’t because their mates won’t permit them. You’d be surprised to learn the majority of Omegas that actually vote are ones living in The District that do not have mates to control them.” Cas got up and stretched before picking up his empty cup and heading for the bathroom. He brushed his teeth and poured himself another cup of tea before returning to the bedroom. Dean was on his tablet, tapping away.

“I’ll be hiring on Sam as my personal law advisor for this revitalization project, and for if I decide later to run for a political office. I’d like to find jobs for Omegas though, on the campaign but elsewhere as well.” 

“Honey, you do employ Omegas. Look at Dennis and his brothers. They can’t be the only ones you have hired,” Cas pointed out as he laid down again.

“No, they’re not, and the policy in my company is that everyone is equal. Sometimes that conflicts with state or local laws though. I try not to set up in places like that, but sometimes the laws change after I’ve already established a shop and have a regular clientele coming in. That makes it harder to close up and move, but I’ve done it before. I think it will be to my benefit if anyone decides to dig into my past to see where exactly I have always stood on Omega rights.” Dean held out the tablet for Cas to take. “That’s the plans for your old building. It will be gutted and completely revamped. All the Omegas have already been relocated to other buildings. I also dropped the rent to reasonable levels. I see no reason to extort money from them just because they’re Omegas. You know that’s what was happening, right? The high rent was to force Omegas into prostitution. I had Chuck do some research and most of the Alphas that owned the buildings in The District were involved in some way in prostitution. I have dropped the rent for all the buildings by half. I also talked to the mayor to look into the utilities and see if they are charging at a higher rate because of the area too. If they are, he’s making a push for the first laws to be changed. If that doesn’t work, I’m looking into buying them out.”

Cas looked up in shock at his mate. “Dean! That’s a lot of money! You can’t just go buying utilities! This isn’t Monopoly!”

Dean snorted and smiled at his husband. “I can and I will if I feel it is justified. Or…”

Cas arched one brow waiting. “Or?”

“I can buy enough stock to have things bend to my will. It’s sneaky, but business owners do it all the time. Might be able to push for more clean energy too,” Dean replied. Cas set the tablet aside and moved closer, wrapping his arms around his mate and squeezing him tight.

“How did I end up with the most wonderful mate in the entire world?” he asked. Dean hugged him back and carded his fingers through Cas’ unruly hair.

“You know, I ask myself that every single day.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I know you brought donuts and stuff. I left them on this counter.” Sam was standing in the kitchen, staring at the empty counter with his hands on his hips.

“I don’t see paper shredded so I don’t think the dogs got into it.” Gabe was looking around the floor but there were no signs of pink, shredded cardboard.

“You guys looking for this?” Dean walked in with Cas, the box of pastries held in his arms.

“You took it upstairs?” Sam asked as he took the box from his brother and opened it.

“Sorry, Cas was hungry last night and I didn’t want to linger for long.” Dean smiled when he saw that the coffee had already been made. He poured himself a cup. 

“Have the dogs been let out yet?” Cas asked as he walked over to the sliding doors and opened them. Just as he opened his mouth to call the dogs, Dean walked over and put a hand on his arm.

“Honey, I have something to tell you.”

Cas looked up, and Dean could see the worry in his eyes.

“Last night, the dogs, they, uh, they did really good. They’re the ones that pinned Alistair down so he could be caught,” Dean said.

“Well, good, I’m glad. Did something happen?” Cas asked.

Dean winced and nodded. “Yeah, baby, something did happen.” He clicked his tongue and immediately the two surviving dogs appeared, sitting obediently at his feet. Cas looked at them for a moment, the realization dawning on him.

“Oh, he killed Sadie?” 

His voice cracked and it broke Dean’s heart to hear it.

“Yeah, he did. I’m so sorry.”

Cas sunk to his knees and called the dogs to him. They both went to him, tails wagging. He hugged them and ran his fingers through their fur as he buried his face in Boomer’s neck. Bailey licked his cheek, and he burst into tears. Dean shared a worried look with his brother and Gabe before he knelt down next to his husband. Cas immediately leaned into him, pulling the dogs with him.

“She was such a good girl.” Cas sniffled and wiped at his eyes.

“I know she was. And she did what she had to in order to protect us. Bailey and Boomer, they need us now. They miss her too.” Dean reached out and rubbed at Bailey’s ear and she turned her head to lick his wrist.

Sam came around to finally let the dogs out into the yard while Dean continued to hold Cas close. Eventually the tears subsided and Cas disappeared into the sewing room, closing the door behind him. Dean could still feel his sadness though. He sighed heavily and went to sit next to Gabe at the island.

“He’ll be alright. He just always wanted a pet growing up, and with his pregnancy hormones these are like his kids, so it’s hard on him.” Gabe patted Dean on the back as he tried to reassure him.

“Should I buy him something? I think he wants a small dog…” Dean looked off towards the sewing room.

“No, now is not the right time for a puppy. You guys already have your hands full with the dogs you have, and you have pups on the way. That needs to be your focus. Perhaps do something nice to remember Sadie. Maybe frame one of the pictures Cas took of her. I know he was making all the dogs pose for pictures last week. I think he’d appreciate the gesture,” Sam said.

“You’re right.” Dean conceded.

“What are your plans today?” Gabe asked.

“Well, I want to head down to the Omega District. There’s work being done, and I want to have more input. I thought maybe I’d bring Cas with me but I’m not sure how he’s feeling right now.” Dean replied. Sam’s phone ringing suddenly caught all three men off guard. He pulled the phone from his pocket and put it to his ear.

“Hello?”

“Sam? This is Jody. Dean’s not answering his phone and this is urgent, do you know where he is?” 

“Sure, he’s right here. We were just eating breakfast.” Sam replied. “Hold on, I’ll put him on the phone.” He handed the phone to Dean. “It’s Jody.”

“Hey, Jody. Sorry, my phone is upstairs.” Dean apologized.

“I’m just glad I reached you. Dean, we have a huge problem; Alistair escaped.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...yeah. I hope you all still love me. Know this, I do have a plan. Leave me a comment, I'm sure I'll hear screaming over the end of this chapter, but I DO have a reason. Love you all, I can't WAIT to hear what you all have to say about THIS...


	24. Bad News

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean breaks the news about Alistair to the family. Cas has a fierce determination to stick by his mate's side as he heads out to The District. They butt heads but Cas is stronger of will than Dean ever gave him credit for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all like this chapter. :)

Dean managed to stumble out of the kitchen, and out of earshot. Surely he had heard her wrong.

“What did you just say?”

“I’m sorry, Dean. He was getting treated for bite wounds and a broken hand when he overpowered the Beta doctor. Alistair…he killed the doctor, a man by the name of Jeremy Edwards. Killed a nurse too. Maybe you know her? Jessica Moore?”

Dean couldn’t hear anything besides the blood rushing in his ears. 

“I will tell my family this, alright?” He had somehow managed to stagger out of the kitchen and into his office, closing the door behind him. 

“Of course,” Jody said.

“Jess…that’s Sam’s ex-girlfriend. They just broke up not that long ago. He won’t take news of her death well,” Dean told her.

“Oh…” There was so much remorse in her voice. His own feelings were all over the place, and he could only imagine how his mate was handling that. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to calm down.

“Any leads on Alistair?” he asked.

“He was spotted on the outskirts of The District around five this morning, but nothing since,” she replied.

“Okay. Keep me appraised. I need to go and break this news to my family.” He sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face in irritation. Alistair was a scourge that needed to be eliminated permanently. Prison or death, there was no in between.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Dean walked back into the kitchen, Cas was no longer in the sewing room but standing next to Sam at the island with his arms crossed.

“What happened?” There was force in his words. He was demanding to know what had just scared the hell out of Dean and that caused his heart to ache so much it might break. Lying was pointless. Besides, he’d promised he never would.

“Alistair escaped the hospital he was being treated at some time last night or early this morning,” he said. He wasn’t sure what kind of reaction he was expecting from his mate, but for Cas to remain perfectly still, his eyes now locked on the backyard where it lay beyond the sliding doors, was not it. 

“No sightings?” Gabe asked. He was watching his brother nervously. Hell, they all were, except Dean. His eyes were locked on Sam.

“Alistair killed a doctor and a nurse too.”

Slowly Sam’s eyes swung back around to meet his own. No words needed to pass. Dean knew his brother understood. The Beta blinked, his eyes beginning to shimmer with tears. He didn’t excuse himself before he walked out of the room. Gabe watched him go before turning back to look at Dean. The expression on the other Alpha’s face told him everything he needed to know.

“Where is he?” Cas asked softly.

“The District.”

Cas laughed but it was a bitter, ugly sound coming from him. “Of course.”

“I’m heading there as it is today, but I think I’ll bring in a security team too. Safety measures,” Dean said.

“I’m going with you.” Cas looked up and the icy look in his eyes dared Dean to disagree.

“It’s not safe, baby.” Dean ruffled slightly at the challenge in his mate’s tone, but forcing Omegas into submission was not who he was. Cas placed a hand protectively over his belly, and Dean thought maybe he saw a slight roundness to it now. Proof his pups were growing in there, that they would be big and strong.

“It’s me he wants. He might just be stupid enough to come out in public if he knows I’m there. And it’s not like he can hide in the brothel, right? It’s been shut down. So really, where is he going to hide?” Cas asked. Even when asking questions there was a confidence, a defiance to his tone that told Dean it really wasn’t a question that was meant to be answered. The idea of bringing Cas deliberately into an area where they _knew_ Alistair was, it made Dean’s stomach heave.

“I’m going with you, but first I need to check on Sam and make sure he’s ok. Please excuse me.” Gabe stood up and left, heading for the stairs. Dean turned to look at his mate. Cas was watching him, one eyebrow arched high, a foot tapping against the tile floor. He knew if he denied his mate, he was likely to see a side of the Omega he really didn’t ever want to encounter.

“Fine,” he conceded. “But you’re not leaving my side for a single second. If you need to use a bathroom, I’m going with you. This is non-negotiable, Cas. That asshole could show up anywhere.”

Cas’ expression relaxed and he nodded, his hands automatically going to his belly. “Can you bring one of your guns? Is that legal?”

Dean shrugged. “I have a concealed carry permit. You’d feel safer if I carried?”

“Yes. Not just the security, but you personally. I need you to be safe too.” Cas went to him, and Dean thought he was going to ask to be held but instead he took his Alpha’s hand and brought it to his belly. There was the slightest bulge in his mate’s normally flat stomach. He pushed his Omega’s shirt up so that he could splay his fingers across where his pups were still forming, once more feeling a fierce need to protect his family.

“Yeah, ok. I’ll make sure I’m carrying,” he agreed. “I’ll go and get one ready now. How does lunch at The Roadhouse sound? You can see Pam.”

“Oh, yes! Please!” Cas cried excitedly. Dean loved to see his mate happy. This entire nightmare with Alistair needed to be over with already.

 

When Gabe returned to the kitchen it was empty. He followed the sound of the sewing machine and found his brother working on the blanket he was making for Dean.

“That’s coming along nicely.” He nodded at the material as his brother fed it through the machine, sealing up one side. The fleece Cas had chosen for the reverse side had flames. Gabe liked the look of it.

“Thank you. I think Dean is going to keep it in the bed and snuggle with it,” Cas laughed.

Gabe chuckled and moved over to the armchair in the corner. “I think you’re right. I bet he wraps your pups up in it too.”

Cas paused in his sewing to look at his brother. “I’m scared.”

“Of what?” Gabe didn’t smell fear on his brother.

“Of having two pups at once. Do you think Dean and I can do it by ourselves?” Cas chewed worriedly at his lower lip. He didn’t have a lot of experience with babies, and he wasn’t sure what to do or how much work they would really be.

“You’ll do fine. And besides, they mostly sleep the first few months. By the time they are spending any kind of real time awake, you and Dean both will have the hang of things. It’s really not scary. I’ll be around to help you if you need it, and others will step in to help, too.”

Cas contemplated his brother’s words for a moment. “Should we start buying diapers now? I’d like to do things naturally. I have trouble looking things up on the computer, but I can look things up on my phone and if we stock up now on cloth diapers, we’ll be keeping the plastic ones out of the landfills. I think it will be better for Dean, too, in the long run, if he decides to run for a government position if he comes across as environmentally conscious too.”

Gabe wanted to ask about Dean running for an office, but he could tell that wasn’t what his brother was most concerned about. “What scares you the most about pups?” he asked.

“That they’re so tiny and fragile. Can we tell before they present what they will be?” Cas wondered.

“There are tests, yes. Do you want to know though? Dad didn’t get any of us tested. Well, he didn’t before you presented. After, I heard he got the little ones tested. He didn’t want another Omega,” Gabe said bitterly. Cas frowned.

“I wonder if he’d sell them as small children if any did present that way.”

“I don’t care what he does. I only listen for the sake of our siblings. If I hear he did that again, I’ll step in and take them,” Gabe told him. Cas gave a small smile.

“Good. They don’t deserve to go through what I did. No one does.”

“So, have you and Dean talked about names yet?” Gabe wanted to get his brother onto a happier subject. When Cas smiled he gave an internal sigh of relief.

“Sort of, but not much. We’re trying to decide on two boy names and two girl names, just in case we get pups of the same gender. I like Rose for a girl because when I first moved in, that was the first thing we talked about changing, out in the yard. It’s a flower we both love. He likes Lauren and Molly. I do like Molly.”

“I like Molly too. Molly Winchester has a nice ring to it,” Gabe agreed.

“We’re still deciding on boy names. I like Aiden. He likes Alexander. But I like Alexander too. I guess we’ll just see when they’re here.” Cas’ expression became almost dreamy as he rubbed his belly.

“Got a bump yet?” Gabe asked. Cas grinned and nodded.

“A little bit. I thought it was too soon but my doctor says no, with twins I’ll get a bump sooner.”

“You’ll be feeling them soon too,” Gabe told him.

Cas hummed in agreement and sighed happily. “I look forward to it.”

“Babe?” Dean called from the kitchen.

“Oh, I think it’s time to go.” Cas turned back to the sewing machine and pressed the pedal to get the needle going again. He finished the final line before cutting the thread and removing the blanket. He held it up for Gabe to see.

“What do you think?”

“I really like the flames, they go well with the car,” Gabe replied. Cas grinned and folded the blanket as he turned the machine off and stood up. He started for the door, and Gabe stood up to follow.

In the kitchen Dean was adjusting a gun holster on his hip. He pulled his flannel over it as they walked in.

“Here, I finished it.” Cas held out the blanket to his husband. 

“Oh, wow! This is so awesome!” Dean unfolded the blanket and held it up to look at it. “I love this!”

Sam was walking in the kitchen, and he looked from the blanket to his brother to Cas.

“Finished it finally, I see. Looks good.”

“Thank you. W-would you like one?” Cas asked his brother in law shyly. Sam glanced at Dean who nodded at him, smiling wide as he hugged his blanket to his chest.

“That would be nice. You don’t have to, if you don’t want to, but I would appreciate it,” he said, giving a small smile.

“I think I would like to make you one…with books. You have an amazing library in your room,” Cas said, his cheeks flushing as he smiled at Sam.

“You ok?” Dean placed a hand on his brother’s shoulder and squeezed.

“Yeah. I’m not as upset as I thought I would be. It’s better since I talked to Gabe,” Sam replied, nodding at the Alpha who was standing next to Cas. Dean looked back at Gabe who was staring at Sam affectionately. It had been a long time since he hadn’t been relied on to ease whatever suffering his brother was experiencing. It was a strange feeling, but he was glad his brother was finding that kind of connection with Gabe.

“Alright, well, we’re heading out.” He patted Sam’s shoulder, his hand automatically going back to the blanket he had over his arm.

“Dean, you can’t take the blanket with you,” Cas said with a laugh. Dean stuck his lower lip out in a pout. 

“Fine. I’ll be right back.” He marched out of the room leaving the others standing there.

“He putting it on the bed?” Gabe asked.

“Yep, he’s putting it on the bed,” Cas nodded.

“You made him very happy, you know that, right? He didn’t get a whole lot when we were kids. Everything he has now, he bought. Even the littlest of gifts make him insanely happy. He’s going to find an excuse to use that thing all the time. Don’t be surprised if he walks around with it on his shoulders like a cape.” Sam snickered and shook his head. Dean was a big kid sometimes, but after not getting to enjoy his own childhood, he deserved to have fun now and then.

“I’ll have to find more things to do for him.” Cas thought for a moment before turning to his own brother. “If I came over, could you teach me to cook a couple of things? And to bake a pie. Dean loves pie. I would like to make him one.”

“Sure. Why don’t you come over Monday? I leave Nelly in charge in the afternoons. I’ll be home by one. You can come by and I’ll teach you to make anything you want,” Gabe replied.

“I’ll make a list of his favorite foods, ones you don’t know about yet. You can surprise him,” Sam offered.

“That would be wonderful. I want to do nice things for him. I can make him a million blankets, but I don’t want that to be all that I do for him. Thank you both,” Cas told them.

“Ok, we’re good to go. You coming, Sammy?” Dean asked as he walked back in.

“No, I have class in an hour. If you need me for anything though, just call me,” Sam said.

Dean rubbed his hands together and looked at the others. “Well, let’s get moving.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Yes, I know, Jess is dead. Can't keep everyone alive, not with a monster like Alistair running around. Leave a comment, let me know what you think. :)
> 
> And Dean has his blanket, finally. You know he's a thrilled Alpha, lol!


	25. Don't Push an Omega

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean, Cas, and Gabe head out to The District to go over the plans fore redeveloping the area, but it's not going to be the smooth, pleasant afternoon they were hoping for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok people, it's time to FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS!!!!!
> 
> Consider yourselves warned.
> 
> Enjoy...

After speaking to the developers and establishing a logical and affordable method of remodeling that would continue to be economical, both for him and for the Omegas that would move into the apartments, they left. Dean wanted to tour some of the other buildings to get an idea of the condition they were in. At every turn reporters were waiting, being shooed back by security, and it had Dean on edge. He kept one arm protectively around his mate while his free hand hovered near his gun.

Many of the old store fronts were severely dilapidated. Before this had been relegated to the Omegas this had been a booming business district. Stores here once sold everything from furs to food to tools. They all stood dark and empty now, most covered in graffiti with their windows knocked out. It was worth investigating them to see how many could be restored and turned into thriving businesses once again. He was seeing the potential for honest, good-paying jobs for the Omegas that lived here if he could get them up and running again. Cas pointed out several, including one that had been a flower shop at one point. 

“This would make a lovely grocery store. The spaces are already there for the coolers, and it has two rooms. One can be for dry goods, one can be for the perishables. What do you think?” he asked, looking up at Dean, his blue eyes dancing with excitement.

“I think that’s a wonderful idea. And do you know what else I see?” Dean countered.

“No, what?” Cas asked.

“I see the potential for a job training program at the Omega high school. Kids can come and earn credits working here, in a safe environment while learning vital life skills. Bagging groceries, cutting grass, things they can’t do very often outside of here due to prejudice or being threatened. And we can expand it to outside of The District once we start getting laws changed and Alphas begin to realize that their actions will have consequences if they go attacking Omegas. They’re baby steps, but they’re in the right direction,” Dean explained. Cas stared at him for a long time as the myriad of emotions he was feeling in that moment battled within him. Excitement, eagerness, concern, love. God he loved his Alpha so very much in that moment. Waiting decades to find his true mate had been worth it. Clearly he had been made to wait for a reason.

“I love you, Dean. So very much. I can’t even find the words to describe just how much I do. And knowing the city will be a safer place for our children? I almost want to sob with relief.” Cas sighed and leaned into his mate, resting his head on Dean’s shoulder.

“I’m just fixing what should have never been let get messed up in the first place. I’m righting a grievous wrong. Omegas are not property, they are people deserving of equal treatment. It’s overdue for Alphas to learn that they cannot just take what they want. I couldn’t imagine forcing you into submission, sweetheart, and I don’t think Gabe could picture doing that with Sam either.” He looked at Gabe, who nodded eagerly.

“No way, I like ’em feisty.”

Dean snorted before kissing the top of his mate’s head. He placed a hand against the gentle swell of his mate’s belly. “My only regret is not making this decision earlier. It shouldn’t have taken waiting to find my mate before I was motivated to make a difference. But…I think I did need to be financially stable before I did it, so this is a good time for that. For making a difference, and we’re going to do that together, as a team.”

“Can I help with restoring some of these stores?” Cas asked, tilting his head back to look up at Dean.

“Absolutely.”

“I’d like to open up a bakery here, if that’s alright. Give much needed jobs to the Omegas,” Gabe said.

“That would be fantastic. I think we’re going to open up an auto shop here too, once the Omegas are able to save up enough to afford cars. They’ll need affordable maintenance as well as jobs. We need to get jobs going, to stimulate the economy and improve the area.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They toured a few more of the shop spaces before making their way to the former brothel. Cas cringed when they walked in. The stale scent of Omegas in heat and of sex in general hung in the air. Dean coughed and wrinkled his nose and Gabe gagged.

“Why are the windows not open? Go open them.” Dean pointed and the security staff began moving to the windows, pulling back the heavy curtains and opening the windows to air the place out. Someone muttered that they felt like throwing up, and Dean wanted to agree. With the room well lit, he got a good look at the place. Never in his life had he ever stepped foot in a brothel, until now, but the ones he had seen in movies and the way he imagined them, this was exactly how he had pictured a brothel to look. Everywhere there were red velvet couches that probably looked romantic in the dim light of the shitty overhead chandeliers, but during the day with the heavy curtains pulled back it was obvious what poor condition they were actually in. If he had to wager a guess he’d say the furniture probably dated back a hundred years or more to when Eve’s great grandfather had first opened the place. Everywhere he looked he could see dried semen. It was absolutely appalling to think of the lives that Omegas had to endure living in a place like this.

“What can we do with this place?” he asked of no one in particular.

Cas and Gabe both looked around.

“This would make a lovely bed and breakfast, but considering the area? I don’t think it would do very well,” Cas said. Gabe nodded in agreement.

“Perhaps down the line, once the area comes up more and laws start to change, but until then, no.”

Dean walked around the room, opening doors, seeing what space was actually available. Most of the rooms had beds, the sheets still tossed back and in disarray from the day the police had come in to shut the place down. Everyone had fled in a hurry. A few rooms were offices while others were storage. Dean cringed when he saw one room completely filled with sex toys and equipment. Cas was busy looking over the furniture when the sound of something falling on the second floor drew the attention of everyone in the room.

“Stay here, sir.” Harold, one of the bodyguards, already had his gun drawn as he headed for the stairs. Another guard by the name of David was covering him as they climbed the stairs. Two other guards crossed the room to stand close to Cas as Dean had instructed them to do. Dean sensed his mate’s apprehension and went to him.

“Maybe it’s just a squirrel,” Gabe said, but he didn’t believe it.

“It’s more likely that one of the prostitutes that used to live here is squatting,” Dean said. Cas murmured in agreement. Something bigger fell on the second floor, and Dean moved to stand in front of his mate. Gabe did the same thing. When Harold and David came back down the stairs they had a woman with them. She was frightened and so underweight it alarmed everyone still waiting on the first floor. Cas pushed his mate and brother aside.

“Louise!” he cried. She looked up, her eyes locking on him before rushing to him.

“Cas! Oh thank God it’s you!” She practically fell into his arms, sobbing as he wrapped his arms around her. He led her to a chair in the corner and lowered her down into it. She was still clinging to Cas as though her life depended on it. He knelt down in front of her and took her face in his hands.

“Louise, honey, what are you doing in here? You know Eve is gone, right?” He kept his tone gentle as he spoke to the frightened Omega.

“Yes, but I don’t have anywhere else to go.” Her eyes welled up with tears as she reached up, placing her hands over the ones he had still on her face. “I’m so hungry, Cas. I haven’t eaten in…” She couldn’t remember the last time she had eaten. Dean snapped his fingers and pointed at the nearest guard.

“Get her something to eat. Get enough food in case we find others.”

The man nodded and left quickly. Dean knelt down next to his mate, and it broke his heart to see how the woman eyed him warily. It infuriated him that Alphas had made themselves out to be such monsters that Omegas feared them like they did.

“Louise, that’s your name?” he asked. She nodded. “We’re getting you food and we’ll arrange for you to have your own apartment, ok? You’ll have everything you need, a bed, clothing, food, and soon we’ll arrange for a job as well.” He spoke softly, not wanting to spook her any more than she already was.

“I’m not here alone,” she whispered. The hairs on the back of Dean’s neck rose and his ears perked up, listening for the sounds in the building.

“Who else is here?” Cas whispered back to her. Her eyes widened and she began to shake. She shook her head. 

“It’s an Alpha, I’m guessing one that helped run this place. She’s terrified. I’d call Jody, or whoever is in charge of District 13 since they’re covering this district for now,” Cas said to his mate. Dean nodded.

“You also just gave me an idea of what I’m going to turn this place into. This will be the new police station.” He stood up and began giving orders to his men, directing them to search every room, from the attic down to the basement. Gabe wandered over to a long counter that served as a bar and nosed around behind it. 

“Hey, Dean? I think they were giving Alphas poppers. Get them to stay hard longer so they spend more money. It also makes them rage. I can only imagine how many innocent Omegas died here.” There was so much sadness in his voice that it drew both Cas and Dean’s attention. Dean walked over to see what his brother-in-law was looking at.

“Oh, shit. We need to get a police cleanup in here, get all of this shit out of here and properly destroyed. I’ll call Jody and see what the proper procedure is for that.” Dean pulled his phone out and made the call.

“Cas, honey, you need to get out of here. It’s not safe.” Louise pulled Cas’ hands off her face and reached out to grab his shirt. “Get out, get your mate out, _now_!”

Cas smelled him before he ever saw him. The smell of rotting flesh wafted into the main parlor and for a moment he was frozen in place, unable to move. 

“Cas?” Dean turned around, his phone still pressed to his ear in time to see Alistair grabbing his mate, yanking Cas off the floor where he’d been kneeling next to Louise and pulled him to his chest. His claws were out, nails pressed against the Omega’s skin.

“Well, well, well, I see you _finally_ brought my Omega back to me,” Alistair snarled. Dean dropped the phone and made to lunge at the other Alpha, but Gabe caught him before he could.

“No! He has my _mate_!” Dean was bordering on hysterical, struggling to get Gabe to release him but the man just tightened his grip. He was strong for such a little guy.

“Dean! _Dean_! You need to calm down! Your mate, your pups, they’re in danger if you attack!” Gabe hissed in his ear. Dean finally stopped struggling, but Gabe was smart enough not to let go.

“He’s my mate you son of a bitch! Where the fuck are my men at?!”

“You sent them to explore the rest of the place and look for squatters, remember?” Gabe said calmly in his ear. They were alone, defenseless, save for the gun hidden on Dean’s belt. There was no way he’d get a shot off without endangering Cas. He could feel his mate’s terror. The sneer on Alistair’s face was sending him into a black rage, his need to save and protect his mate was overwhelming, but with Gabe holding him back he couldn’t move. He roared so loud his men came racing, all freezing as they ran into the room.

“Don’t move! Anyone! If you move, you endanger Cas! Back off!” Gabe commanded. The security staff did as told but they didn’t back up very far. The hold Alistair had on Cas tightened and pricks of blood appeared on his pale flesh. Dean snarled but Cas lifted one shaky hand, a plea to his mate to not make the situation worse. Dean let out a whine of frustration, his eyes meeting Alistair’s over his mate’s head.

“Let him go,” he snarled through gritted teeth.

“I don’t think I will. You see, I told you many months ago that this Omega was mine. You didn’t listen to me. Over and over I told you to deliver him to me, untouched. It is _you_ Dean Winchester who is at fault here. This Omega is mine, and I will do him with as I please,” Alistair replied so calmly that it made Cas’ skin crawl. 

“What are you going to do? You can’t mate him, he’s already been claimed. He’s useless to you now,” Gabe said.

“What are you doing?” Dean hissed. Gabe still had a death grip on him but tightened his hold further.

“Using common sense. Plus it’s distracting to him.” Gabe’s whisper was harsh but Dean heard him. He understood.

“I know. He is ruined. The most wonderful-smelling Omega I have ever encountered, and now he smells like rotten fruit. But see, there is a plus side to this. I can still use him, still mate with him, even if someone else holds the claim, make him produce _my_ pups. And if he can’t produce my pups, well, I’ll just have to see what orientation this comes out to be, and take it as my mate.” Alistair’s hand slid under the front of Cas’ shirt to caress his belly. The Omega cringed, trying to pull away from his touch, but Alistair just held him tighter, his claws digging deeper into flesh and making Cas cry out. Slowly Alistair backed up, pulling Cas with him. Dean realized the Alpha meant to escape with his mate and he fought harder against Gabe, growling as his own claws extended.

“Well isn’t that interesting,” Alistair mused as he watched Dean’s eyes turn red. Cas winced as the claws at his throat dug in a little more, almost cutting off his airway. The hand under his shirt finally disappeared and he nearly sobbed with relief, until he saw the gun that came up in his peripheral vision. That was pointed directly at Dean. “We won’t be needing you anymore… _daddy_.”

“No! You can’t kill one in a true mate pair! You’ll kill them both!” Gabe screamed. Alistair made a clicking noise with his tongue and shook his head.

“Guess we’ll just have to see if we can disprove that theory.” He cocked the gun, ready to shoot until the Omega he _thought_ he had under control suddenly roared.

“Cas! No!” Dean reached out for his mate and this time Gabe let him go. He overcompensated, landing face first on the filthy carpet. When he looked up the entire world went into slow motion.

Cas grabbed the arm with which Alistair was aiming the gun and wrenched it clean from its socket. The Alpha screamed, the gun falling from his hand as he staggered backwards, and then the Omega was on him, claws extended, snarling and tearing at the Alpha, ripping his face and throat to shreds. He grabbed the other arm, wrenching that one from its socket as well before lunging forward to rip the Alpha’s throat out.

“Cas, baby, no!” Dean scrambled to his feet and took a few steps forward, unsure whether it was safe to get close. Gabe had run over but even he wasn’t going near his brother.

“Cassie! _Castiel_!” Gabe shouted. Suddenly Cas lifted his head. As he turned to look up at his mate and his brother the gold in his eyes began to fade.

“Dean?”

“Oh, baby, come here, it’s ok, you’re safe now.” Dean caught his mate as he tried to stand and ended up falling to his knees.

“Dean, I-”

The Omega suddenly went limp in his arms.

“Shit! Get the car!” Dean raced outside with two of his security staff and scrambled to get into the back of the Hummer. He held his mate, checking to make sure he was still breathing and had a pulse while trying to ignore the blood that covered the man. It was a longer ride to the hospital since they were coming from The District but the moment they pulled up at the emergency room, Dean was jumping out, his mate still cradled close to his chest.

“Please! Help me!” he cried as he staggered through the door. Nurses were already running over and in his near hysterical state he left it to his bodyguards to explain the situation. A nurse that tried to take Cas from him was met with a show of teeth and red ringed eyes, but then Gabe was rushing in the door and explaining to the nurses and staff who led Dean into the back. When he finally laid his mate down on a gurney, Gabe took him and guided him to a chair in the corner so they could watch the doctors and nurses work.

“He’s ok. My brother is strong. He’s ok,” Gabe repeated his little mantra over and over and Dean wasn’t sure if it was for his benefit or for Gabe’s. He didn’t care. He needed it to be true. 

Twenty minutes later things began to calm down. An ultrasound machine had been brought in and it was determined that Cas, while unconscious, was alright, and so were their pups. Dean nearly sobbed with relief.

“Care to explain what happened?” a doctor asked. “Without the commentaries from everyone else.”

“My mate, he had a stalker, Alistair, an Alpha pimp from The District that was trying to challenge my claim, even though Cas is my true mate. I hired security and they were with us today, but Alistair, he was arrested last night for trying again to break into our house, but somehow he escaped. Today my mate, my brother in law, and myself, we went to look at some properties I plan to recondition in The District, and we were looking at an old brothel when we heard some noises. My men, they found a hungry, starved Omega on the second floor. I made the mistake of sending my men to check the rest of the building, and it was just us left when Alistair came out of who knows where and attacked my mate. Held him and threatened his life. When he raised a gun to shoot me, Cas just sort of went nuts. Tore into the bastard. When he finally calmed down, he passed out. I brought him straight here.” Dean was giving the doctor the abbreviated version. He was saving the full story for the police report he knew would need to be written later.

“Hmm. True mate you say?” The doctor tapped his chin as he thought. Dean nodded.

“Yes sir.”

“I have heard of this happening before. It’s extremely rare now since it’s not often that true mates are endangered like you were today, but it does happen still once in awhile. It would appear your Omega went into what is called an ‘Alpha Rage.’ Like I said, it’s rare. The need to protect a mate is not exclusive to the Alpha in a true mate pairing. It is a fundamental need in both the Alpha and the Omega. As your mate, he was most likely fearful for his life. I’m surprised you didn’t go into a rage first,” the doctor said.

“I held him back. I was afraid it would escalate and my brother and his pups would be seriously hurt,” Gabe said. The doctor nodded.

“Well, it would likely have gotten one or both of you killed if he had attacked. The difference between an Alpha Rage and an Omega experiencing an Alpha Rage is that hormones spike so fast that they’re about three times stronger than even the strongest Alpha. And they are unaware of the things they are doing. It’s like a blackout. He most likely won’t remember what he did. You’re lucky you didn’t touch him while he was in that state or you could have been grievously injured as well.”

Dean looked at Gabe with wide eyes only to see the same expression being mirrored on the other Alpha’s face.

“Fuck! Is he going to be ok?” Dean finally asked.

“We’re going to get him cleaned up, make sure he stays sedated for the next few hours, and then he should be ok to go home,” the doctor replied. Dean looked over to see one nurse slipping something into Cas’ IV while another was gently wiping all the blood from his mate’s face.

“Thank you,” Dean said as he shook the doctor’s hand.

“Take it easy yourself. He’s going to need you after this.” The doctor gave a nod before leaving the room. Dean’s legs suddenly felt like jelly, and he dropped back into the seat next to Gabe.

“I’ve never seen anything like that before. That was crazy,” Gabe murmured just loud enough so that only Dean heard him.

“I don’t ever want anything or anyone scaring my mate like that again.” Dean went to rub the bridge of his nose but the sight of Alistair’s blood all over his hands gave him pause. “I’m going to go wash my hands. Call Sam, would you? Ask him to come down with a clean shirt.”

“Sure thing.” Gabe already had his phone out and was dialing Sam’s number as Dean made his way to the nearest bathroom.

There was way more blood than he had thought. It was on his face, his hands, up under the sleeves of his shirt, on the shirt itself, it was everywhere. Never in his life had he seen so much blood. As he pumped soap into his hands and began to wash them his mind flashed to the sight of his mate leaning down to rip Alistair’s throat out. He had no need to wonder whether the Alpha scum had survived. There was no way anyone was going to survive that. His hands were shaking and he wished fervently that he could get all the blood out from under his nails too, but that would require a real shower once they were back home. 

After washing away the blood, he stripped carefully out of his flannel and then his tee shirt. He balled them up and tossed them in the trashcan. A few minutes later there was a knock at the door. When he opened it he found Gabe standing there. 

“Hey, they gave me this for you, until Sam gets here. He’s in class so I got his voicemail. Cassie is awake, barely, and asking for you.”

Dean took the scrub top and pulled it over his head before following Gabe back to his mate’s room. Cas was indeed awake, though just barely. He reached out for Dean the moment he spotted him. Dean climbed up into the bed and pulled his mate close.

“Dean.” The word was thick due to the sedative and somewhat slurred.

“I’m here, baby. It’s ok,” Dean said softly. They had cleaned Cas up, but he could still smell the stench of blood on his mate. He wanted to bring his Omega home and give him a proper bath.

“Dean, he was gonna hurt you…” Cas’ hands scrambled for purchase on the front of his mate’s shirt and he whimpered when he couldn’t grab at it. Dean took his mate’s hands, stilling them for the moment.

“Honey, it’s alright. Alistair’s not a problem anymore, I promise. Now all I need is for you to get better so I can take you home.” Dean kissed his mate’s forehead, his cheeks, his eyelids, the tip of his nose, until his mate began to purr very softly.

“That’s a good sign,” Gabe said as he approached the bed from the other side.

“Yeah. I just need him to get the rest he needs so I can take him home,” Dean said with a sigh. Cas had drifted off again, and he was loathe to move. He was cold but Gabe was one step ahead of him. The Alpha had already located another blanket and was putting it over Dean and his brother.

“You need some rest too after that. Get some shut eye. I’ll be here watching over you both.” Gabe patted Dean’s arm before moving back to his seat and sitting down. Dean decided to take his advice. A couple minutes of sleep couldn’t hurt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope no one fell out of their seats. You can loosen the seatbelt now, I'm sure your thighs are all chafed from that sudden descent into Hell...
> 
> Leave a comment, let me know what you think. ;)


	26. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Sam face the aftermath of what the attack by Alistair has done to their mates.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is about as intense as the last one, though for different reasons. There is an aftermath that comes with severe trauma, and more than just Cas were affected by this. I do hope you like this chapter.

“What the _fuck_ happened?! Is Cas ok?” Charlie was standing in the emergency room waiting area demanding to know what happened to her best friend’s mate.

“I know about as much as you do,” Sam said with a shrug. This not knowing was stressing him out majorly. He had texted Gabe when they arrived to let him know they were in the waiting room, but so far Gabe had not texted back. Sam looked down at his phone and frowned. He wasn’t getting any bars in here which meant Gabe most likely wasn’t either. He switched over to Facebook Messenger and contacted the Alpha. A few minutes later Gabe was rushing through the doors and pulling Sam into his arms.

“Is he ok? What the hell happened?” Charlie demanded.

“Relax. Cas is ok, but he has had an extremely traumatic experience today. Alistair showed up where we were at looking at buildings, and he tried to kidnap my brother. Before he got to a door to take him the bastard pulled a gun, not believing me when I told him they were true mates and that shooting Dean would kill Cas as well. Cas just…went bat shit crazy. Ripped Alistair’s arm from its socket before tearing into him. I honestly didn’t even know Omegas _had_ claws until today. He fucked Alistair up bad. Then he…” Gabe frowned and looked away. That had been awful seeing what his brother had done, and he had to swallow the hard lump in his throat before he could even think of continuing.

“He what?” Sam asked. Gabe looked up at him, his expression filled with a haunted sort of sadness. He took a step closer and dropped his voice so only they could hear him.

“He fucking ripped Alistair’s throat out. _With his teeth!_ ”

Sam gaped and Charlie just stared.

“You’re kidding, right? Omegas aren’t violent like that!” she hissed.

“No, not kidding. And I don’t think it will go over well with the press to learn what Dean Winchester’s mate did. Or maybe it will, if he can manage to not let them twist the story. It was the most messed up thing I’ve ever seen in my life. He almost tore Alistair’s arms right off! I’m pretty sure even the coroner wouldn’t be able to tell what he looked like after Cassie got done with him.” Gabe shook his head. These were images that would haunt him for the rest of his life.

“The pups are alright?” Charlie asked. Gabe nodded.

“Oh, yes. Apparently it’s something called an Alpha Rage, and Omegas that are paired with their true mates can experience it if they feel the life of their mate is threatened. Cas heard that gun cock, and he just fucking _lost_ it. I took one of the nurses aside a little while ago and asked about the pups. I wanted to know how they could have survived this. She said they are protected in the womb. More so during a rage like tonight’s. So they’re safe, Cas is sedated and sleeping for the moment, curled up in Dean’s arms. And he’s sleeping, too.”

“So Alistair is…dead?” Sam was still stunned by that fact.

“Deader than a doornail,” Gabe replied.

“Is he going to remember this?” Charlie hoped not. Cas didn’t need to remember something so incredibly horrible.

“Doc says no. It was the equivalent of a blackout rage.”

Sam moved over to an empty chair and sat down. Gabe sat down on one side of him, taking his hand and kissing the back of it gently while Charlie took the seat on the other side of him. All that they could do now was wait.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean was given the go ahead the following morning to take Cas home. His mate was still sleepy from the meds he had been given, and Dean had to practically carry him into the house. With help from both Sam and Gabe, he not only got his mate up and into their room, but he got a nice, warm bath started. Once his brother and brother-in-law had left the room, he helped Cas to strip down.

“What are we doing?” Cas asked sleepily.

“Taking a bath, sweetheart,” Dean replied as he pulled the sweatshirt the hospital had sent Cas home in over his head.

“I’m tired, Dean.” Cas yawned and swayed on his feet. Dean guided him to the edge of the bed and made him sit down so he could remove the rest of his clothes and shoes.

“I know, darling, but you need a bath. I’m getting in with you, ok? All you have to do is relax.” 

When Cas was completely naked, Dean scooped him up and carried him into the bathroom. Once he had Cas sitting in the water he pulled his own clothes off and slid in behind his mate. Cas sighed and leaned back, closing his eyes and letting Dean wash his hair and body. The next time he opened his eyes he gasped at the sight of the water. It was tinged pink.

“Dean! Am I bleeding? Are the pups ok?” His heart was racing as he struggled against his mate, desperate to get out of the water. Dean held him close, forcing him to relax.

“Shh, sweetheart, the pups are ok, _you’re_ ok. It’s…not your blood. We just needed to wash it all off you. Everything is going to be alright.”

Cas looked up at him, his eyes still wide and fearful. “What do you mean it’s not mine? If not mine, whose is it?”

Dean pulled Cas a little closer and kissed his temple.

“Dean, damn it! I’m so tired, but I want to know what the hell is going on! Why was I in the hospital? All they told me was that I blacked out. I’ve never in my life blacked out. And why do I have blood on me?” 

Dean could feel how scared and upset his mate was. He sighed deeply and rested his head against his mate’s shoulder.

“What’s the last thing you remember about yesterday?” he asked.

Cas relaxed and thought about the events from the day before.

“We…had breakfast. Then you, me, and Gabe all headed over to The District. You went over plans for some of the buildings and remodeling, and then we went to look at some of the other buildings, to see what condition they were in and what you wanted to do with them.” He frowned as he thought over the previous afternoon. “And we were at…the brothel.”

“That’s right, we were,” Dean confirmed.

“And Louise? She was hiding upstairs? Is she alright?” Cas turned again and Dean lifted his head so his mate could see his face.

“She is. I had a doctor do an exam because she was severely underweight. But she’s going to be fine. I had Chuck set her up in her own apartment. What else do you remember?” 

Cas shivered. The water was getting cold so Dean drained it and began refilling the tub with clean, warm water.

“Well, I know security was searching the rooms. Louise said she wasn’t there alone.” Suddenly Cas stiffened and his heart began to race. “Alistair! He was there!” 

Cas’ fingers flew up to his throat and he winced as he felt the cuts the Alpha had left behind after digging his claws into the flesh there. “Dean? What did he do? I remember a gun. Oh God…” 

Dean was thankful for the size of the tub and that he could turn his mate in his arms and pull him close to cradle him. Cas clung to him, his entire body wracked with shudders.

“Shhh, Alistair is gone. He can’t threaten you, he can’t threaten me, and he can’t threaten our pups. We’re all safe now,” Dean spoke in a soothing tone as he nuzzled against the mating mark on Cas’ shoulder. He was desperate for his mate to relax but it wasn’t working.

“What _happened_ Dean? Is Alistair dead?” 

Dean really wished he had at least Gabe in there with him at that moment to help him explain things.

“Yeah, baby. He’s dead.”

Cas went limp in his arms and for a moment it scared the ever-loving shit out of the Alpha, but then Cas was lifting his arms to wrap them around his mate’s neck.

“Oh, thank God, thank God…”

Dean turned the water off and reached over to grab a bottle of the essential oils his mate loved so much. He added several drops of lavender to the water and picked up a washcloth, using it to gently wipe his mate’s back.

“It’s over now, honey. We’re all safe.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You’re telling me that peaceful, sweet, soft-spoken Omega _ripped an Alpha to shreds_?!”

Sam took a deep breath and let it out slowly, nodding. “That’s right. Something about true mates and their need to protect one another. Apparently it’s not just the Alpha that protects, but the Omega can and will if their mate’s life is threatened. He did what he had to in order to keep Dean safe.”

Ellen shook her head, completely shocked by what Sam had just explained to her.

“But he’s alright? The pups are alright?” 

“Yeah, and Cas doesn’t remember anything past the gun getting pulled and aimed at Dean,” he replied.

“Good. He doesn’t need to remember something like that.” She shook her head and set a pitcher of beer on the table in front of him. “You were there? How bad was it?” she asked Gabe.

“Bad. No one saw Alistair sneak in the room until he had Cas by the throat. I had to hold Dean back. I was afraid if he went after the guy, he’d tear my brother’s throat out. I had no clue just how unstable the bastard really was. He was intending to take Cas, whore him out in a brothel somewhere else, and take one of the pups later as a mate if they were an Omega. If not, he’d have probably killed them. Dude clearly knew nothing about true mates. He actually was delusional enough to believe that he could get Cas to pop out his own pups later on down the line. Cas and Dean are linked biologically. The _only_ person that can impregnate my brother is Dean. I can’t even imagine the tortures he would have inflicted upon my brother if he could have gotten away with stealing him, but of course we all know he wouldn’t have even gotten that far had he actually shot Dean. I was ready to jump in front of him if it meant he and Cas had a chance of surviving.” Gabe poured beer into his mug and took a gulp.

“You’re a good man, Gabe,” Ellen patted his shoulder, but he shook his head.

“I don’t feel like one. I held Dean back, I kept him from attacking Alistair, I...”

Sam reached across the table, covering the Alpha’s hand with his own. “You were the voice of reason. You kept my brother from doing something stupid that would have endangered him, his mate, and their pups. No one really knows what Alistair was capable of. He was insane, selfish and completely unpredictable. What you did? It helped to save their lives, not endanger them. Dean doesn’t hold any ill will towards you, no one does.”

Gabe’s lip quivered and he sniffled as he wiped at his eyes with his free hand. “Doesn’t feel that way.”

Sam looked up at Ellen who nodded and left. When she was gone he stood up and moved to sit next to Gabe, pulling the Alpha into his arms.

“You’re brave, Gabe. I’m not even sure I could have done what you did. You used your head and your common sense at a time when it left both my brother _and_ your brother. I’m so glad you were there.” He kissed the Alpha’s cheek softly, feeling like he’d won a small victory when Gabe leaned into his touch.

“Is he going to be ok though? Really ok?” Gabe looked up at him and Sam could see the fear in his eyes.

“Dean will take good care of him.” 

Gabe shook his head. “That’s not good enough. He _murdered_ a man. That’s going to haunt him.”

“Maybe, maybe not. He was doing what he needed to do in order to protect his mate, his pups, his pack. Give him time, and don’t beat yourself up over it, ok?” Sam ran his fingers through the Alpha’s hair and pulled him closer. He’d forgotten that not only could Cas be traumatized by everything, but so could the others involved. He made it a point to check on Dean later and make sure he was ok.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope you enjoy this chapter. Leave me a comment, let me know what you thought.


	27. Crashing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even the strongest Alpha can break if pushed hard enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dean breaks down and tries to drink away his feelings. Sam and Gabe find him sobbing in his office, trying to drown his emotions. Sam does his best to soothe his brother and get him cleaned up before Cas finds him. Even Alphas have their limits.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Dean got Cas settled into bed before heading down to his office. He needed a few minutes alone, something he hadn’t had since before this whole thing happened. Sinking into his chair, he found the bottle of Jack in his drawer and the tumbler he kept with it. With shaky hands he poured himself a generous amount and swallowed it down. For the last thirty six hours he had avoided thinking about what he had seen, how close he had come to his mate dying, to _him_ dying, to the possibility of losing Gabe as well, but now it all came rushing back in vivid technicolor. He shuddered and poured himself a second drink. His nerves were frayed, and he was desperate for some kind of release from the visions that flooded his thoughts. He didn’t even realize he was crying until the first fat drops landed on his thigh, spreading across his jeans. After that they spilled freely. He was glad he’d given Cas one of the pills the doctor had prescribed and that his mate was out like a light or the emotional storm he was experiencing would be affecting his mate, too. 

That was how Sam and Gabe found him. Drunk, crying, and reliving the events that nearly cost him and his family their lives.

“Hey, Dean, Dean, come on, come here.” Sam plucked the tumbler from his brother’s hand, giving it to Gabe before locating the nearly empty bottle of Jack and handing that over as well.

“Take that out of here. Give me a few minutes with my brother,” he told Gabe. The Alpha nodded and left quietly, closing the door behind him.

“Dean? Talk to me.” Sam knelt down next to his brother and placed a hand on his arm. “Hey, it’s ok. You’re ok, Cas is ok, come on, talk to me.”

Dean shook his head, his face crumpling as tears fell even harder. Sam pulled him out of the chair and down onto the floor, wrapping his arms around his big brother. For a long time they just sat there in silence.

“It should have never happened,” Dean said, his voice cracking as he wiped tears and snot from his face.

“You’re right, but it was not your fault. We’ve been over this before, the dude was nuttier than a fruitcake, and nothing you did would have been able to change that. He locked on to Cas before you ever met him. But it’s not Cas’ fault either. You can’t control the sexist, terrible Alphas out there, all you can do is try to make the city, and maybe the world, a safer place for Omegas everywhere, to try and gain the equality they should have always had. In ancient times Omegas were revered, put up on pedestals and adored. I don’t know why or when society began to see them as worthless, especially since they are the lifeblood of our species. Omegas carry eighty percent of all children. Without them our entire species would die out. And we treat them like garbage, this has to stop. You are the first Alpha in over three hundred years that not only has wanted to restore Omegas to their former glory, but has the resources to make it a possibility. You have the ability to eliminate the thinking of Alphas like Alistair, to make it safe for unmated Omegas to walk down the street without being harassed or raped. To make it a safe place for your pups, for mine, for your children’s children.”

Sam put an arm around his brother’s shoulder and leaned his chin on the top of Dean’s head.

“I can’t begin to imagine what you went through yesterday, but what I do know is that you are strong, Dean. The strongest Alpha I know, and the leader of our pack. Your mate did what he had to do to protect you, and I know it was hard to witness what he did yesterday, but we all know Alistair was a monster, and if he’d gotten away with taking Cas? The horrible things he would have done to your pups, I know that’s something you would never allow, for your mate or pups to be endangered like that. Well, guess what, Cas feels the same way. So don’t blame yourself. You are not a failure. You dealt with a mentally unstable Alpha with a God complex. There was no way out of that except death. Better that it was at Cas’ hand than your own since he won’t remember doing it. Don’t feel guilty because you couldn’t protect your mate. Be proud because he chose to protect _you_.”

Dean wiped at his eyes and sat up. “Yeah, you’re right. I just keep seeing the images in my head; I can’t shake them. It was the scariest thing I’ve ever seen. I’ve seen some Alpha fights that were pretty bloody, hell, when I fought Luke to get you back, I’d never seen so much blood in my life. Until yesterday. Shit Sammy, he tore Alistair’s throat out with his teeth and spit it out! My sweet, gentle, loving mate…for a minute he was the scariest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I was scared.”

“For your life? You know Cas would never hurt you.” Sam knew Cas would rather die than hurt Dean.

“No, not for my own life, or really even for Gabe’s. It was more a fear that my mate had snapped, and I wouldn’t get him back. When he looked up at me his eyes were gold, but there was no sign of the man I love. None at all, until I called his name. He was so confused, Sammy, so lost. That’s what scared the living shit out of me.” Dean ran a hand down his face. “My head hurts.”

“You drank more than half a bottle of Jack, of course it hurts. How is it that Cas isn’t reacting to your pain?” Sam asked.

“Oh, the doctor prescribed a sedative. Cas was on edge after his bath. There was more blood in the water, and he freaked out. Once I got him washed up and into bed he was still wound up, so I gave him a pill and waited for him to fall asleep. Then I came down here.”

Sam sighed heavily as he got to his feet and pulled Dean up with him. 

“Come on, you need a shower, and I need to make sure your tub is clean.” 

Dean let his brother lead him up the stairs and into the master bedroom. Cas was sound asleep, curled up on his side hugging Dean’s pillow. They passed through and into the bathroom. Sam grimaced at the sight of the tub. There was a pink ring and pink soap bubbles everywhere.

 

“Go on, get in the shower and I’ll clean up the rest of the bathroom,” he told his brother.

“You don’t have to do that, I can get it later,” Dean argued.

“And risk Cas seeing this? No. Just get your ass in the shower, and brush your teeth while you’re in there. And your tongue. You reek of alcohol, sweat, and misery. Worry about yourself for a minute, and I’ll take care of the rest.” 

Dean nodded and stepped into the alcove where the shower was, leaving his brother to clean the rest of the bathroom while he washed away everything that would further aggravate his mate’s current anxiety. He set the temperature to hot and stripped down. As he stepped under the multiple streams of water he sighed. It felt good, despite having recently been in the tub with Cas, and he took his time cleaning himself. He washed his hair and was alarmed to see the water tinged pink as it washed down the drain. The stress he’d been feeling seemed to wash away with it and as he stepped out of the shower, he felt refreshed but tired. His head still ached, and there was a terrible taste in his mouth. After wrapping a towel around himself he stepped into the main part of the bathroom he saw that Sam was now gone, but the tub and the rest of the bathroom were immaculate. No smell of blood lingered in the air. He brushed his teeth and dried off before heading to the bedroom. Cas was still asleep, snoring softly. He put on a pair of underwear and crawled into the bed. Cas immediately curled around him. He laid there for a few minutes trying to figure out how he was going to handle the media once they got wind of this. Right now there was a gag order in place, and no one was allowed to talk about what happened. He wanted to be the person that broke the news to his mate, not for him to find it second hand on the news. Right now though, he was exhausted, the events of the last day and a half catching up to him, combined with the alcohol in his system, was making it difficult to keep his eyes open. He kissed the top of his mate’s head softly before finally closing his own eyes. Tomorrow he would worry about the aftermath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please, leave a comment, let me know what you think. :)


	28. Don't Lie to Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean can't keep putting off telling his mate what happened. Afterwards he shifts the conversation to talk about their pups to ease his mate's stress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for not putting this chapter up yesterday. I got almost no sleep Tuesday night so I was like a walking zombie yesterday and I lost track of time. I woke up this morning genuinely asking myself what day of the week it was. Even with sleep last night (my body still wanted to be a dick and after falling asleep at 3 last night, I woke up at 10:30. I was like oh, HELL no! And went back to sleep til 12. Don't hate me, I'm currently unemployed. STILL looking for a new and better job, or for my books to take off and make me wildly popular. You know, whichever comes first), I am still tired and yawning. I'm putting up the chapter I meant to put up yesterday. So sorry about that! I hope you enjoy it, they're naming the pups in this one.

“Cas?” 

Dean walked through the entire downstairs, searching for any sign of his mate but he wasn’t finding him anywhere. He had expected to find him in the sewing room again but the room was empty. Climbing the stairs to the second floor he followed his nose to the nursery.

“Babe?”

“In here,” Cas called back softly. Dean followed the sound of his mate’s voice and stepped into the room. Cas was in the rocking chair again, the blanket laid over his legs. He looked up, smiling when Dean walked in.

“Hello, darling.” 

Dean loved hearing his mate use terms of endearment. He smiled and knelt down next to the chair. 

“How are you feeling?” He ran his fingers through his Omega’s hair, hoping to hear his mate purr but he didn’t.

“Why won’t anyone give me a straight answer as to how Alistair died?” Cas asked. Fuck. For the last two days Dean had managed to avoid this topic, or at the very least to divert it. He was so scared his mate would blame himself further for what had happened, but it would only make Cas angry if he continued to avoid the topic. Instead he grabbed the footstool in the corner and brought it over to the chair so he could sit down next to him.

“You remember that Alistair pulled out a gun, right?” he asked. Cas nodded.

“Yes, and you screamed my name. I vaguely remember you picking me up off the floor, and then I woke up in the hospital.”

Dean reached over to take his mate’s hand. “Something happened.”

Cas sat up a little straighter. There was anger blazing in those blue orbs. “What happened? Why won’t anyone tell me _how_ Alistair died? Do you think you’re protecting me because I’m pregnant? Or because I’m an Omega and you think I can’t handle it? That I’m too sensitive? This is the kind of mindset we’re trying to eliminate, Dean, and here you’re fucking perpetuating it!”

Dean forced himself not to react to his mate’s anger. It wouldn’t do them any good if he got into a fight with the man. Instead he took a deep breath. 

“This is what happened. Alistair made threats against me, said he was going to force you into submission, force you to have his pups and since I had ruined you for him he was going to take one of our pups if it became an Omega, as his mate. He didn’t listen to anything Gabe or I were telling him. He refused to believe that you and I are true mates.”

“I remember all of that. I remember being terrified but furious. I remember seeing the gun from the corner of my eye and he said something to you, something awful…” Cas frowned as he struggled to remember.

“He threatened to kill me, even after Gabe tried to tell him that it would kill you too. He cocked the gun and…you attacked him.” Dean watched as the anger in his mate’s eyes turned to one of shock and then resignation.

“I thought that was what had happened,” he finally said. “What exactly did I do?”

“Well, the first thing you did was you ripped his arm right from its socket, the one holding the gun. He was in shock and pain, and he let go of you. When he did, you lunged, tackled him to the floor. Did you know Omegas have claws? And wicked sharp canines? Because I did not until that moment.”

“Oh God, I tore him to shreds? I’m an Omega! How the hell did I overpower an _Alpha_?!” Cas cried. He was clearly distressed, Dean could smell it on him. Before Cas could react further, Dean had stood up and pulled him up and into his arms. He sat down in the rocking chair and Cas folded himself up as small as he could in his mate’s embrace.

“It’s called an Alpha Rage, and it only happens with true mates. It’s not just the Alpha that protects their mate, the Omega does too, and you were protecting me. He intended to kill me, and your instincts kicked in. I’m here because of you, sweetheart. Our pups will be safe, because of you.”

It was highly uncomfortable sitting in the rocking chair with a man practically as big as he was trying to curl up in his arms so Dean stood up, waiting for his mate to wrap his arms around his neck before he left the room, carrying him into their bedroom. Kicking the door shut behind him, he made his way over to the bed. With a calmness that surprised even him, he removed his mate’s shoes before kicking off his own. He laid out in the bed and Cas curled into his side, his body trembling. Dean could feel the emotions that rippled through his mate. The horror and shock mixed with fear and pain. It was the pain that bothered Dean the most. His instinct was to do anything possible to ease it, but he didn’t know how. 

“Sweetheart, we’re _safe_. That’s what matters. Omegas everywhere will be safe now because of you.” Dean sat up long enough to strip off his shirt and jeans. He wanted skin on skin contact and the way Cas was looking up at him told him his Omega wanted the same thing. Once he was down to his underwear, Dean leaned down to remove his mate’s shirt and pants. As he stretched out once more beside his mate, he placed a hand over the bump that held his children. 

“What do you think they’ll look like?” he asked as he caressed his mate’s belly. It was getting bigger every day. As Cas laid out next to him he could actually see it now. His mate was going to be _huge_ carrying two pups, but he wasn’t going to tell the man that! 

“My brothers and sisters were a mix. My mother had dark hair and blue eyes like myself, but my father had blonde hair and hazel eyes. I technically _look_ like my father, but I got my mother’s hair and eyes. Gabe, he looks more like our mother, but got our dad’s hair. His eyes, they’re more like our grandfather’s. Amber eyes are rare,” Cas replied.

“My mother had blonde hair and green eyes. She was beautiful. Sammy, he looks more like our dad as far as hair and eyes, except our dad’s hair was darker, and he had brown eyes instead of hazel. I look like my mom, even though my hair is way darker. Hers was the color of corn silk. God she was beautiful, and she would have loved you.” Dean leaned down to kiss his mate’s belly.

“I hope one looks like you, and one looks like her,” he murmured. Cas was finally beginning to relax and he smiled at his mate.

“I wouldn’t mind a pup with blue eyes, but I want them to look like you. You’re so gorgeous, Dean.” 

Dean snorted and kissed the bump again. “Guess we’ll just agree to disagree, because I want them to look like you.”

“Do you think they’ll be tall? You’re tall, and Sam is huge. I’m considered tall for an Omega, but then again Gabe is considered small for an Alpha, so I guess anything is possible. I wonder if they’ll have Sam’s hair…” Cas ran a hand over his bump as Dean laughed.

“Oh God, I don’t need more divas worrying about their hair,” he groaned. Cas grinned.

“I dunno, he _does_ have pretty hair. Much better than mine.” He ran his fingers through his own hair, making it stick up everywhere.

Dean wrapped himself around his mate, running his fingers gently over the bump as they talked about things related to their pups. 

“I think we should honor your brother somehow. What do you think of naming a pup Gabrielle, or Gabriella? We can call her Elle, or Ellie. He’s done so much for us these last few months.”

“I like Gabriella. Gabriella Rose, how does that sound?” Cas looked up at his mate, who nodded. 

“I like that. I’ll call her Ellie Rose.” 

“That’s really cute, I really like that,” Cas agreed.

“Good. One name down, three more to go,” Dean laughed.

“I was talking to Gabe about the names we’ve been thinking of. I do like Molly. She’ll need a middle name though,” Cas said.

“You pick it. Then you can pick the boys’ first names and I’ll choose their middle names, since that seems to be the direction we’re taking,” Dean suggested. Cas thought for a minute.

“Molly…Catherine?”

“That’s nice.” Dean liked the sound of that. “But with a K, not a C.”

“Molly Katherine Winchester. It has a nice ring to it,” Cas leaned closer to kiss the mating mark on Dean’s shoulder. “I like the sound of it a lot.”

“Still want Aidan if it’s a boy?” Dean asked.

“Yes.”

“Ok, so how about…” Dean ran a dozen names through his head trying to find one that fit well. “Matthew. Aidan Matthew Winchester.”

“Yes! I like that very much!” Cas agreed.

“Ok. One more name, and we’ll be done.” 

“I do like Alexander,” Cas smiled up at his mate.

“You’re sure?” Dean had chosen that name, and he hadn’t realized Cas liked the name that much.

“Yeah, Alex Winchester, it has a nice ring to it.” 

“Ok, so…” Dean nuzzled against his mate’s throat for a moment while he thought. “How about Alexander Christopher?”

“That’s nice, I like that,” Cas agreed.

“Guess our pups are named, then,” Dean said with a smile.

“They are. Now can you go downstairs and get me a snack please?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the pups are named.
> 
> Gabriella Rose  
> Molly Katherine  
> Aidan Matthew  
> Alexander Christopher
> 
> You'll just have to wait to see what they actually are though! Leave a comment, and have a fabulous day!


	29. Handling the Media

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After hiring a press advisor Dean and his mate face the media.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had accidentally skimmed right over the entire topic of how they dealt with the media, but after several comments saying they wondered how it would be handled, I went back and wrote this. I do hope that you like the chapter. Enjoy!

Dean could feel a migraine coming on. He pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to breathe slowly. Someone to his left patted his back and he opened his eyes to see who it was. His brother in law Gabe gave a reassuring smile.

“You can do this. And we hired a press agent. She won’t let the questions get out of control.”

Dean smiled back, though he knew it was weak. “Yeah, I just don’t want this to turn into a circus.”

“Then don’t let it. You don’t have to answer anything you don’t want to.” Gabe said.

“And I won’t, especially at the expense of upsetting Cas.” Dean turned to see his mate sitting on the other side of him staring out across the conference room with wide eyes. Dean could sense his Omega’s fear and vulnerability, and how nervous he was. He reached over to take the man’s hand. Cas turned his gaze on his Alpha.

“Dean, I’m not comfortable. This is scary.” He whispered.

“You’re safe, I won’t let anyone bully you, I promise, but if we want this issue handled with diplomacy and in a way that will keep this from getting turned around on us, we need to speak out now, before rumors fly any more than they already have. And we need to get the word out to Omegas everywhere that they are strong and don’t need to live in fear. They need hope, baby. And you’re the person that can give that to them.” Dean leaned over and kissed his mate’s cheek, aware of the pictures being snapped at that moment. Their press agent, a sharp tongued, strong willed Alpha named Abby stepped up to the podium. More pictures were taken and video began to roll for every news station as she cleared her throat.

Gabe had been the one to seek out the agent, and Dean quickly figured out why. Abby was ruthless and had a take no crap kind of attitude. Her eyes were piercing and full of fire and her perpetual red lips reminded him of a blood splash. He was an Alpha but she intimidated even him. After talking to her for five minutes he knew she would be able to handle any question thrown at them, and she would do everything they needed in order to protect Dean’s image and protect Cas. As aggressive as Abby was, she was polite and professional, but most of all, she was respectful of Cas. Dean paid special attention to how she interacted with his mate, looking for signs that she was not being genuine, but everything from her body language to the way she spoke to Cas showed nothing but absolute respect for him. The fact that Cas liked her and wasn’t nervous around her spoke volumes to the Alpha.

Standing now at the podium she oozed confidence. The room fell silent as she introduced herself. Dean looked at the people sitting with him and Cas. Gabe, Sam, and Chuck were all there, watching, waiting for any problems that might arise. Abby turned towards their seats.

“Dean?”

He stood up, smoothing a hand down the front of his suit before walking over to the podium. All eyes were locked on him as picture after picture was taken. His notecards were waiting and he picked them up.

“On Thursday, August twenty ninth I was touring through The Omega District with my husband and mate, Castiel Winchester, and my brother in law Gabriel Novak when we were caught off guard by Alistair Crane, an Alpha that was stalking and harassing my mate against his will for close to a year now. He had no claim on my mate, and Castiel had, on multiple occasions denied his advances. When I met Castiel it was apparent immediately that he was my true mate.”

Dean had to pause as voices began to murmur around the room. He held up a hand to let the room know he wasn’t finished yet. Slowly it fell silent again.

“The day I went to The District to pick my mate up from his apartment and bring him home, Alistair was trying to beat down the apartment door. I had the police called, only to find out that there was no police force regularly present there, so we had to wait for them to arrive. In the meantime I confronted Alistair myself and told him that he had no business harassing Castiel. Alistair refused to accept that we were true mates. The police did arrive and escorted him away however, as police reports will show, Alistair continued to stalk my mate, even after I had laid my claim. He showed up at my house, even going so far as to attack my brother and attempt to kill him. If not for my brother in law Gabriel being present and getting him to leave my brother alone, Sam would not be here today.” Dean motioned towards his brother and brother in law, both of whom smiled politely and nodded. He turned back to face the room.

“After that, the attacks continued. He and several others, including his brother Azazael broke into my home while my brother was in the hospital and did a lot of damage. The police were called in and during the search, Azazael attacked an officer and was shot and killed in the process. We were forced to go and stay with Gabriel while our house was being repaired, and while my brother Sam was recovering from his injuries. Alistair found us there and continued his attacks. An innocent security system technician was killed by either him or one of his associates. When we returned back to our home, his attacks continued. Every single time he showed up, I followed the law and called the police. He was finally arrested two weeks ago and we thought our problems were over. We expected the law to prosecute him to its full extent, however he escaped and disappeared.”

“On August twenty ninth I went to speak with some developers regarding changes we’re making to bring up the value and make The District a safer place, and as I stated before, my brother in law Gabriel and my mate Castiel accompanied me, as well as our security staff. While we were in a building formerly known to be a brothel, we heard some noises. The security staff I had with me, I sent them to investigate after a squatter was found, but the noises persisted. While we were in the main room waiting to see what they found, Alistair snuck in and grabbed my mate. He made a series of threats against my life and refused to listen to reason concerning true mates and the bond between Castiel and I. While he held my mate hostage, claws digging into my mate’s throat, Alistair Crane pulled a gun.”

The murmuring picked up again, louder this time. Again he held up a hand to quiet them. His jaw clenched in irritation when it took longer for them to fall silent.

“Alistair aimed the gun at me and threatened to shoot me. My brother in law attempted to talk some reason into him, but he was unable or unwilling to listen. It was explained repeatedly to Alistair that a true mate bond cannot be broken, and that killing me would also kill my mate, but he refused to believe us. At that time something happened. My brother in law was holding me back, preventing me from attacking Alistair to free my mate. He was afraid Alistair would shoot before I could get him to release Castiel, so he did what he felt was best for both myself and my mate to keep us safe, all while continuing to try and talk sense into Alistair. He still refused to listen and he cocked the gun. At that point, my mate attacked him.”

This time the room erupted in a hundred different voices, all trying to talk over one another. Dean looked to Abby who nodded and stepped up to the mic.

“Hey! The deal was that you will _wait until Mr. Winchester is finished speaking_!” She bellowed. All voices stuttered to a stop. “You will respect Mr. Winchester and remember, he did not have to speak to a single one of you. This is a privilege and he is trying to explain what occurred in the death of Alistair Crane, for which there are no less than nine eye witnesses to corroborate his story. There will be no more interruptions or you will not get to question Mr. Winchester, his mate, or his brother in law. Have I made myself clear?” The room was as silent as a tomb. Abby motioned to Dean to continue and he stepped up to the mic again.

“What occurred to my mate is a condition that, in these modern times might seem rare but in all actuality it was, in ancient times quiet common and expected. During a time when Omegas were still prized by Alphas and seen as equals, Omegas that found their Alpha true mates were known to be fierce warriors, going into what is referred to as an “Alpha Rage” when they felt their mate’s life was in danger. During one of these rages an Omega becomes three times more powerful than even the strongest Alpha and will attack anyone that is threatening their mate. In this case, Castiel saw the gun, saw Alistair cock it, and his instincts kicked in. He did what he had to do in order to protect me. Because of my mate, I am still here today. He is still here.”

Dean looked to Abby who stepped forward again.

“We will now take questions, one at a time. Mr. Winchester retains the right to answer or not answer any question you may have. The details of his personal life are not to be questioned at this time. Please remain civil and be aware that those two gentlemen sitting on the other side of Mr. Novak are both lawyers, and they _are_ here to monitor this Q  & A.” She turned to Dean and smiled. “It’s your cue.”

Dean was dreading this part. The speech was bad enough but the actual questions were terrifying. He took a deep breath as he stepped up to the mic once again. Hands shot up in the air and he pointed to a man in the front row.

_“Mr. Winchester, is it absolutely certain that Alistair Crane had no claim over your Omega when you took him as your mate?”_

“First, please do not refer to him as _my_ Omega. He is my mate, he is my husband, but he does _not_ belong to me. Get that thought out of your head right now. Second, I am absolutely certain. I filed legal documents to take over guardianship of Castiel before I brought him to my home. In order for the documents to be approved there has to be absolutely no other claims in place, however, any prior claims are immediately null and void _by law_ in the case of true mates. Castiel is my true mate, as I have said multiple times already.” He pointed at another reporter.

_“Is there a danger of your mate going into another Alpha rage?”_

Dean wanted to roll his eyes at the sheer stupidity of the question.

“No, there is no danger. Unless someone decides to attack me, in which case, I pity them.”

He glanced over at his mate who actually looked shocked. He winked and Cas pursed his lips and rolled his eyes. Turning his attention back to the media he continued to take questions. On advice from Chuck and Sam, he only answered the ones directly related to the events that led up to Alistair’s death. When the questions became repetitive he motioned to his mate to come and answer the ones he knew they had for the man. Cas stood up and adjusted his suit jacket as it had ridden up over his belly and walked over to the podium. People were twice as eager to talk to him and he was so nervous it was making Dean nervous all over again.

“It’s ok, honey. They won’t bite.” He kissed his mate softly on the temple before stepping back. As Cas turned to the waiting crowd, Dean returned to his seat. There was more murmuring about that. Apparently they had expected him to hover over his mate and dictate which questions he was allowed to answer. Well, they were certainly in for a big surprise!

“Um…you.” Castiel pointed to a reporter near the back.

_“Was your pregnancy affected by the rage you went into?”_

Cas shook his head. “No, everything is still going perfectly fine.” He pointed to another reporter.

_“Alpha Rage supposedly leaves the Omega with little to no memory of the attack. It’s supposed to be a defense mechanism. Do you remember anything of the attack?”_

“No, I do not remember the attack. The very fact that I took another person’s life, it will haunt me for the rest of my life. I understand that I did what I did to protect my mate, but I do wish that it had not come to such a horrific ending. In an ideal world there would have been no legal or moral right for Alistair to have tormented me and stalked me the way he did, and therefore this would not have been the final conclusion. But unfortunately this is _not_ an ideal society. That is why my husband is trying to make a difference, to stop things like this from happening, so Omegas everywhere can feel and be safe. Alistair had no right to do what he did, but no one, and I do mean _no one_ will ever lay a hand on my mate. And no one will ever lay a hand on me again. If there is one thing my mate has taught me, it’s that I am strong enough to take care of myself, to protect myself, and that I can protect my mate if need me. I have an Alpha mate, but he does not own me or control me. Our pairing is completely equal, as _all_ Alpha/Omega pairings should be. My mate has given me hope. Hope for a better world, hope for Omegas and for Betas everywhere.”

The entire room fell silent as Cas turned and walked back to his seat, signaling that he was done taking questions. He sat down and leaned into his mate’s embrace as Dean wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

“I think your little speech there went over way better than mine did.” Dean whispered. Cas grinned up at him.

‘You think?” 

Dean nodded. “Yes, sweetheart. You’re amazing, and so strong. Even if I didn’t run for mayor or any other political office, I’m sure people everywhere would love you. Omegas everywhere will look up to you. You are the hope for a better society, love. If I see everything good that the world can be in you, they will too.”

Gabe patted Dean’s thigh as he got to his feet. “My turn. Apparently they have questions for me too.”

They watched him head up to the podium. Dean hoped this was going to work out to their benefit, and to the benefit of Omegas everywhere.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, let me know what you think. I do hope you liked this chapter. :)


	30. Generosity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas decides to go out. It's his first time venturing out alone since Alistair died. He brings Andy from their security staff since it's still not safe for Omegas and they head out for breakfast. Cas gets an idea. It's time to head over to The District to check in on his fellow Omegas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope you all enjoy this chapter.

Cas woke slowly, purring contentedly as he stretched his body out. His hand reached across the bed, seeking out the warmth of his mate, but the other side of the bed was cold and empty. Lifting his head he listened. No water running in the bathroom.

“Dean?”

No answer. He swung his legs over the edge of the bed and got up. After relieving himself and brushing his teeth, he found his robe and headed downstairs. Sam was sitting at the kitchen table tapping away on his laptop.

“Good morning, Sam. Did Dean go down to the shop this morning?” he asked as he headed to the fridge. 

“Yeah. He left a note for you on the fridge.” Sam didn’t even look up; he was busy still typing. Cas pulled out the orange juice and looked at the piece of paper stuck on the door.

_Babe, I have some paperwork I need to get done, and we have a new computer system being installed. I should be home in time to make dinner. If not, I’ll let you know. Or we could go out to eat, how does that sound? I’ll call later. I love you._

_~D~_

Cas smiled as he took a glass out of the cabinet and poured himself some juice. He was hungry, but he didn’t want to cook. In fact, breakfast out sounded really good.

“I think I’m going to go out for a little while,” he said. This time Sam did stop typing. He turned to look at Cas.

“It should all be safe now. Just make sure you give Dean a heads up so he’s not worrying needlessly. You know how he is.”

Cas smiled and nodded. “I think I’m going to go get some bagels. I have this incredible taste for an everything bagel with cheddar cheese, toasted with butter.”

“That actually sounds really good. Pick me up a couple of those? Don’t toast them though, I’ll do that here. And a blueberry bagel? If you haven’t tried it yet, get some of the strawberry cream cheese. I bet you’ll love it,” Sam said. Cas’ stomach rumbled thinking about it.

“That does sound good.” He pulled the pen and the pad of paper off the fridge and made a quick list. After finishing his glass of juice he rinsed it and set it in the dish rack. “I’m going to let Andy know as I think he’s the one working this morning, and then I’m going to go get dressed.”

“Alright, I have to get this paper done but then I have class at noon. I’ll be home around four, and I think Gabe is coming over tonight.” Sam turned back to his computer and started typing again.

“Alright. I’ll have my phone on me. If you need me, just text me,” Cas said. Sam gave a little wave as Cas took his bagel list and left the kitchen, heading for the front door to seek out Andy, the guard in charge. He found the man on the front porch.

“Hello, Andy,” he greeted him.

“Hello, Mr. Winchester. Sleep well?” Andy asked.

“I did, actually. I’m sure that won’t last much longer so I’m enjoying it while I can,” Cas said, smiling. Andy smiled and nodded.

“Yep, get as much shut eye as you can now. You won’t for the next eighteen years.” The man laughed.

“I hear that a lot. I really hope it’s an exaggeration,” Cas chuckled. He looked out across the yard. The media was an almost constant presence nowadays, especially after the press conference a few weeks ago.

“I’m going out this morning. Dean will not be pleased if I go alone, so I will need someone to accompany me.” 

“Sure. I’ll take you anywhere you want to go,” Andy said.

“Alright. I’m going to go change. I’ll be down in about ten or fifteen minutes. I still need to let Dean know I’m leaving.”

Andy nodded, and Cas headed back up to the bedroom. He went to put on a pair of jeans, but they wouldn’t button. 

“Damn it,” he muttered. Dean had bought him several pairs of maternity pants and he’d been holding off on having to wear them, but it looked like the time had finally come. He found them hanging in the closet and selected a pair of black ones. After putting on a roomy tee shirt he grabbed one of Dean’s flannels and put that on too. It smelled like his mate, and that was comforting. Once he had his socks and shoes on he took his phone off the charger and texted his mate.

Cas: Hi honey, I wanted to let you know that I’m going out for a bit this morning. I have a taste for bagels. Andy is going with me. Did you want me to pick you up anything?

He had found his wallet and tucked it into the pocket of his flannel and was grabbing his coat when his phone chimed with a response.

Dean: Be careful, ok? Where are you getting bagels from?

Cas: I want the everything bagel that has the cheddar cheese already melted on it. I want them to toast it and put some of that garlic butter on it. So I thought I’d try Monty’s bagels downtown.

Dean: They have awesome ones. Pick me up few for breakfast tomorrow. Would you maybe grab me some lunch on your way back and swing by with it? I’m not going to have the time to stop and get anything.

Cas: Sure. Ellen’s?

Dean: YES

Cas: Alright. Love you, see you in a few hours.

Dean: Love you too.

Cas tucked his phone in his back pocket and went downstairs. Andy was waiting just inside the front door for him.

“Ready to go?” 

Cas nodded. “Sure am.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The bagel was so amazing Cas ordered a second one. He sat down with Andy in the little bagel shop and they chatted as they ate. He’d bought a bagel for Andy too, onion with lox. After his breakfast he went back up to order the ones for Sam and Dean, and he got to thinking. He just hoped Dean wouldn’t be upset with him later. He looked at the girl behind the counter.

“Give me every bagel you have.”

Her eyes bugged out at his order.

“Seriously?”

“Yes, I want them all,” he replied.

She looked over at her manager. “He says he wants them all.”

The manager, an Alpha, turned to look at him. Her eyes widened as she recognized him.

“Oh, Mr. Winchester! Certainly, sir, we’ll get them all boxed up for you. Would you like anything else?” 

“I’d like several containers of each flavor of cream cheese, and the lox,” he replied.

“Absolutely sir. We’ll have it all ready for you in about ten minutes,” she said. Cas smiled and nodded before returning to his seat.

“Anyplace else you wanted to go today?” Andy asked.

“Yes, in fact. We will be heading over to The District,” Cas replied.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas: Don’t be upset with me.

Dean: What did you do?

Cas: I’m standing in front of my old apartment building handing out bagels. Andy is here with me though, I am not alone. Oh, and the media followed too. 

Dean: Babe.

Cas: Are you mad? Please don’t be.

Dean: No, I’m not mad, I just am worried. We haven’t got everything straightened out, and the laws are not changed yet. Stick close to Andy, ok? How long will you be there?

Cas: I have a few people I wanted to check on, and I needed to check one of the buildings out. I have an idea for it.

Dean: Let me know as soon as you leave, ok?

Cas: I will, I promise. I love you.

Dean: I love you too.

It was only a few seconds later that Andy’s phone began ringing.

“That will be Dean warning you to keep me safe. Let him know we’re fine,” Cas said. Andy grinned as he took the call. Cas turned his attention to the people surrounding him.

“Hey, Cas, it’s good to see you back here. Most Omegas leave and don’t think twice about putting this place behind them. It’s nice to know you still care,” Paul Kenney said. Cas smiled and held out one of the eight boxes of bagels so Paul could take one.

“I could never forget about my friends,” he said. Paul smiled and reached into the box.

“Thank you, Cas. What you and your mate are doing for everyone here, you have no idea how much it means,” Dorothy Mendez said.

“I am truly lucky that my mate is such an amazing and thoughtful person. He has big plans to help Omegas everywhere,” Cas told her.

“Do you know what you’re having yet?” she asked. Cas smiled and rubbed his belly. It was getting bigger every day. Last night he had felt fluttering, and when he had tried to get Dean to feel it, they both had realized it was still too light. Another month or so and Dean would feel their pups kicking.

“No, not yet. We want to wait and be surprised.” 

“We’re all happy for you, you know. I got into an apartment. I’ve never had a place of my own. And I got a job waiting for me when the new bakery opens. I’m so excited.” Dorothy was practically beaming. Cas handed the box to Andy so he could hug the woman. 

“The bakery is owned by my brother. We’re still working on getting other businesses to come into the area. If they don’t, Dean plans to open some of his own here and hire Omegas. So more employment is coming.” He looked out over the crowd. There were maybe thirty people present, and he recognized every face. Andy was opening another box and people were helping themselves to the food inside. It warmed Cas’ heart to see his fellow Omegas happy and looking better than they had in years.

After the food had been handed out and the boxes disposed of, Cas and Andy followed Dorothy up to her new apartment. He was happy to see how well the remodeling had been done. Reinforced steel doors on every apartment, plumbing that worked, electric that worked, and brand new appliances were in every unit, and Dorothy was thrilled to show Cas everything. What made him happiest was seeing her fridge was stocked with food. Churches in nearby districts had taken up the cause and were delivering food to all the Omegas here. No one was going hungry anymore. He admired the freshly painted walls and new flooring. It gave him a renewed sense of pride in his mate. Dean truly cared for Omegas everywhere and wanted them to have a better life. This wasn’t all for show to win over a mate. This was Dean. It was who he was, a caring, selfless man, and Cas fell in love with him all over again.

After visiting with Dorothy he made his way over to see Louise. She was so happy to see him she hugged him for nearly five minutes. Then she was pulling him into her apartment and showing him around.

“I ain’t a prostitute no more, Cas! I got a real job! I clean up over the First Methodist Church in District Twelve! They give me food too. I’m doing real good thanks to you and your Alpha! I can’t thank you enough!” She was so happy, happier than Cas had ever seen her before, and he was happy for her. And she looked fantastic too. In the few weeks since they’d found her starving and frightened at the old Brothel she had put on at least twenty five pounds. Her cheeks had filled out, taking away the haunted look that had lingered for far too long in her eyes. Now she was full of smiles, her once dingy, greasy looking blonde hair now clean and full of fluffy curls. 

“That’s wonderful news, Louise! I’m so happy for you!” He gave her another hug.

“Will you be stopping by again soon?” she asked.

“Oh, definitely. Maybe not once I’m too big to really walk, but after I birth, yes, I’ll be back. I’m still advising on what we should be adding to help continue to bring the area up, but this was my home for far too long to simply walk away. You all are my family.” He reached over to take her hand and she sniffled, wiping a tear from her eye.

“You’re an angel, Cas. Do you know that? An honest to gosh angel!”

He smiled at that. “I just care about everyone here, and so does my mate.”

“I have an idea, if you want to hear it. For something you can do to help the people here.” She said.

“Of course, what is it?” he asked.

“Well, I got to thinking, you know? There’s a lot of people here with pups, and they can’t just go and get jobs cause of all them pups. What if maybe some Omegas got help with getting a teaching degree or license or something, and you opened up a daycare here in The District? Course with all the pups around here you’d have to hire a pretty good size staff, but then people could go and get jobs and they wouldn’t have to worry about their pups, you know? Like Pam always did with her pups. It wasn’t right, her having to work the streets so much just to take care of her family. She wanted to be a singer, you know? But she couldn’t cause she had so many pups to worry about. There are so many people here with even more pups, and no one to watch their pups so they can work to feed them. A daycare could make that happen.”

He had to agree, that was a brilliant idea. “I will talk to Dean about that. It’s a really good idea.”

She smiled brightly. “I got a couple more ideas too.”

“Well, let me hear them,” he said. Any ideas that would help the Omegas live better lives, he was eager to hear.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas made it to the shop at a little after one with Dean’s food. His mate was so happy to see him, and he could practically smell the relief on the man as he walked into his office. Dean was up and out of his seat the moment he spotted his mate, coming around the desk to pull him into his arms. Cas allowed the man to reassure himself that his Omega was ok, letting Dean scent him before kissing him gently.

“Did you have a good trip?” He asked as he finally stepped back.

“Oh, yes. I bought bagels for everyone and toured some of the finished apartments. Dorothy showed me her place, and I went to visit Louise too. She had some really good ideas, including putting in a daycare center so the Omegas there can get jobs without having to leave their pups home alone. I agree that it’s a wonderful idea. I promised her I would tell you about it. She suggested finding businesses that would sponsor scholarships to Omegas to get the necessary degrees and licenses to run a daycare. That way not only are the pups that live there being cared for, but Omegas in The District are getting jobs too. Maybe we could call it Winchester Daycare?” Cas tugged lightly on Dean’s shirt and looked up at him with wide blue eyes as he waited to hear Dean’s thoughts on the subject.

“I think that’s a fantastic idea. In fact, I’ll talk to some other business owners and see if we can’t get together some scholarships. Do you know anyone that may want to apply for one?” Dean asked.

“I’m sure I can find a few. And we can make it known at the high school too. Most of the Omega children there feel rather hopeless. Things like this, it will give them a purpose. Perhaps scholarships to get licensed in auto repair for the shop you plan to open would be a good idea too.” 

“That’s brilliant! I’ll make a few calls and see what we can come up with.” Dean kissed his mate softly on the cheek. “Will you stay for lunch?”

Cas held up the two bags he’d brought. “I brought enough food for us both.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave me a comment, let me know what you thought of this chapter. :)


	31. Hungry Pups

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cravings are kicking in, and Cas has a very particular food in mind...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So forgive me. Though I am not pregnant, I have been craving good Puerto Rican food A LOT lately. I can make the arroz con gandules myself, and it's pretty damn good too, but I can't make pasteles, and I want to cry over that. I spent 6 years in a relationship with a Puerto Rican man. He's the father of my kids, and while there is absolutely nothing I miss about him (long story that I won't hash out. Let's just say he makes Dick Roman look like Mother Theresa), I do miss his mother's cooking. Not his, he cost me my gallbladder, but I do miss his mother's cooking. She's back in PR now, and sometimes I am REALLY tempted to fly out there just so she'll cook for me, lol. She always liked me better than her own son anyway. Getting it from restaurants is just not the same. You gotta get it authentic, right from the source. I feel the same way about tamales. And there are only a few places I will even step foot in for REAL Mexican tacos. I'm very particular. I have a Puerto Rican uncle, and while I love the man to death and he cooks like an angel, I can't eat his arroz con gandules because he cheats and uses chorizo. I am not able to digest a lot of foods, and sausages are one of the things I cannot digest. Especially chorizo. I throw it up. So I can only sit there and stare longingly at the enormous pots that he makes for family gatherings. He doesn't make pasteles, and I suppose I should be glad because he'd probably add chorizo to those too. 
> 
> Now that I have made myself hungry, I do hope you will enjoy this chapter. :)

“My back is aching,” Cas whined as he made his way down to the first floor. He rubbed at it but it wasn’t helping. “Dean!”

His mate came rushing out of the kitchen to see the Omega waddling (he was now large enough to officially waddle). Dean hurried to his side and wrapped an arm around him.

“How does a massage sound?” he asked as he guided his husband into the kitchen.

“It sounds wonderful. My back hurts so bad today.” Cas whimpered as Dean helped him sit down at the kitchen table. 

“Hey, good morning,” Sam greeted as he walked into the kitchen. “Did you give Cas his gift yet?”

Cas perked up. “What? You got me a gift? Why?”

Dean smiled as he walked over to the counter near the stove and picked up a plate of food. He carried it back, setting it down in front of his mate. “Since when do I need a reason to buy you something?”

“Dean…”

“Ok, ok, it’s because you’re now officially six months along. I wanted something to spoil you, help with your aches.” Dean leaned over to kiss his husband.

“What did you get me?” Cas asked. He was excited for anything that would help with his constant pain.

“Eat up and I’ll show you.”

Cas stuck out his lower lip in a pout, but he turned his attention to his food. Dean got up, going to straighten up and load the dishwasher while Sam joined Cas at the table. A buzz at the gate alerted them that they had a visitor. With Alistair gone they didn’t panic anymore when they had visitors. Dean went to the door and looked at the monitor. The dogs were sitting at his feet waiting for his next command and he reached to pet their heads as he pulled up the camera for the front gate. He smiled when he saw it was Charlie. 

“Come on up,” he said through the intercom before opening the gate. As soon as her car was through, he shut it again. They’d had a lot of problems with nosey media personnel the last few months, and he was getting tired of it. As he watched the monitors he could see his security staff shooing away two more cars lurking nearby, trying to gain access to the property.

“Dean?” 

He started back towards the kitchen with the dogs in tow. Bailey immediately trotted over to Cas and laid her head on what still remained of his lap. He smiled and ran his fingers through her fur. Boomer stuck by Dean’s side as usual.

“Charlie’s here. Sam, tell her I’ll be in the parlor with Cas, ok?” Dean asked his brother. Sam nodded.

“You got it.”

“Since when did we have a parlor?” Cas asked as Dean helped him to his feet.

“Since I set up the room I used for storage as one. It used to be a parlor but seeing as how I didn’t need two dens, I’ve just been shoving stuff in there for years. The last couple of weeks, while you’ve been resting, Sam, Gabe and I have been cleaning it out and organizing. I bought some things that will be nice to use even after the pups are here.” 

Dean guided his mate down the hall, past the office and past the first floor bathroom. A door at the end of the hall stood open, and he reached out to push it all the way open.

“Dean, what is all this?” Cas asked as he took in the newly transformed room. There was a black table against one wall and what looked like a strange arm chair on the other side of the room. A massage table was in the center of the room and there was some exercise equipment in the corner and a treadmill in front of the window. There was a fireplace and it was lit. The room was warm and Cas turned to smile at his mate.

“I don’t think I can do the massage table, honey. I can’t lie on my stomach.” He rubbed his belly for good measure.

“I know, that’s why I got this. I talked to a lot of people and they thought this would help a lot.” Dean led him over to the black table on their right. “This is a hydro massage table. I or Sam, or heck, even Gabe if he’s here, can help you get up and down from it. It’s good for circulation, relieving the tension in your back, and will help your aching joints. It’s safer than the hot baths I know you love. If you need more of a deep tissue massage, and I was advised to tell you to wait until after the pups are here, that chair over there will help with that. The table is for later. I have a masseuse on standby, ready to come and give anyone in the house a massage whenever we need one, but I was thinking more that we’d just set up a schedule. Want to give it a try?” Dean rubbed his mate’s back as he spoke and Cas lit up as he described what the table could do.

“I’ve never seen such a thing. Do I need to change? Am I going to get wet? You called it a hydro massage after all.” 

“No, honey, the water massages you, but it’s under the vinyl. You won’t get wet.” Dean helped his mate up onto the table, almost forgetting to tell him about the dip in the center until Cas started to roll into it. He caught him though and helped him lay down before showing him how to work the monitor that he swung out over the bed. 

“This dictates how hard of a massage you want, and this dictates the heat of the water. Oh, and this button here means you can stop the movement so it’s massaging a certain area.” Dean pointed each button out and a few seconds later Cas was starting it. He giggled as the massage started at his ankles and began traveling up his body. He moaned as his calves were massaged, then his thighs. When he reached his lower back he groaned loudly.

“Oh, that feels so good….”

Dean chuckled and smoothed his mate’s hair back from his forehead. “I knew you’d like this.” As he watched, his mate actually dozed off, so relaxed was he from the massage. He smelled Charlie entering the room before he saw her. When she came up on his right he smiled at her.

“Likes his gift, I see. Shit he’s huge!” she gasped.

“Shh, don’t wake him. And don’t comment on how big he is. He’s already self-conscious. I think he’s even more gorgeous like this. The pups are kicking like mad now, and he doesn’t get a whole lot of rest as it is. His back is constantly hurting. I set this to low, so the pups don’t go crazy, but by the time he’s ready to have them he might just need to sleep on this table.” He chuckled and looked at his mate again. Cas looked more peaceful than he had in the last three months, since he realized he couldn’t comfortably sleep on his stomach anymore.

“Got a pregnancy kink there, Dean?” Charlie teased.

“Nah, he’s beautiful no matter what. But there’s something special about knowing those are _my_ pups in there. I’m so excited for them to be here, but at the same time I’m enjoying having Cas all to myself. It’s not going to last much longer.” He sighed and reached out to place a hand on his mate’s belly. One of the pups was doing karate in there. He wondered how on Earth Cas was able to sleep through that.

“You guys still, you know, _doing it_?” she whispered. 

“Hush now, girl! That’s none of your business!” He shot her a dirty look, but there was no heat behind it. With a snicker he nodded. “Yes, and it’s not half as awkward as you’re probably thinking it is.”

“I was actually trying not to picture it at all.” She shook her head and laughed.

“Stop talking about our sex life,” Cas mumbled. He cracked one eye open, spotting Charlie. “Hey.”

“Hi, how are you feeling, hon?” she asked.

“Like a whale, and nothing you say will convince me otherwise. But I feel tons better lying here. This feels amazing. Might still need Dean to massage my feet later though.” He opened his eyes and winked at his husband. Dean laughed and nodded.

“Sure, sweetheart. They look swollen; I’d be happy to.”

Cas grinned. “I’m so spoiled. I love it. I love _you_.” 

Dean leaned down to kiss him. “You ok here for a few minutes? You don’t have to go pee or anything, do you?”

“No, I’m good for a little while longer.”

“Ok, I’m going to be in the office for a bit with Charlie. I need her to go over some stuff for work, but I’ll be back shortly. And don’t be surprised if Sam pops in to see how you like the table. He tried it last night and didn’t want to get off,” Dean chuckled.

Cas smiled as he closed his eyes. “Yes, that does sound like Sam.”

“I’ll be back in a little bit,” Dean told him. Cas hummed in agreement.

“I’ll be waiting.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So doc says everything looks good? Do you know what the pups are?” Charlie asked as she sat down at the computer.

“Everything looks great, but we don’t want to know what the pups are. We’re looking forward to a surprise. I’ll show you the nursery when we’re done here. Sam’s friend came and did the mural after we had the room painted; we got the second crib and the rest of the furniture. Cas raced through the first blanket he was making so that he could start on a second one. He thought he’d be able to take his time with the first one, but nope.” Dean snickered as he pulled up another chair. Charlie was already typing away on the computer. It was tax season and while he had an accountant, she always came to help with going over it all before they let the accountants have it. He was so thorough throughout the main part of the year that the chance of embezzling from him was close to nonexistent, and he wanted to maintain that fear in the people he employed. It kept them honest. He had fired people in the past for stealing from him, and people much higher up than just Gordon. 

By the time Charlie had gotten her program up and running to check the books of every single shop (If ever there was someone Dean was thankful to have in his life, it was Charlie. With her computer skills she kept his businesses running and healthy, and with the staff he had hired to work under her lately she was getting a ton of time off, and now she didn’t know what to do with herself. Tax season was a busy time for them though, and she was as busy as he was.), his mate was wandering past the office on his way to the kitchen. He gave a little wave as he waddled on. Dean excused himself for a moment and followed his mate.

“Sam help you up?” he asked when he got to the kitchen.

“Mmm, yes. He’s using the table now,” Cas snickered. He was fishing around in the fridge, looking for something to make for lunch.

“Want me to cook you something?” Dean asked him.

“No, I’m ok. I can make my own food. Go on, do your taxes.” Cas had learned to make a few dishes, but his pregnancy hormones had him craving all sorts of things. Lately he’d been craving the Puerto Rican food his friend Rosa Mendez used to make for him. Rosa taught two languages and English as a second language at the high school and was married to a loving, wonderful Alpha. She would bring in different dishes from time to time, and Cas always felt especially lucky when she did. Her Alpha wasn’t wealthy but he worried about the other Omegas just like Dean did, and when she would ask if she could make a large pot of arroz con gandules, or three dozen pasteles, he never batted an eye. Right now his stomach rumbled, and he craved her food. Nothing in the fridge looked good. He pulled out his phone and texted Meg. She would be able to get in contact with Rosa.

Cas: Hey, how are you? Good I hope. Could you please do me a favor and give my number to Rosa? Ask her to call or text me later today. 

He stuck his phone back in his pocket.

“I have a craving for Puerto Rican food. Specifically, my friend Rosa’s cooking, but I don’t have her number, so I asked Meg to give her my number and have her call me. I’m dying for some of her Spanish rice with the beans and pork, and her pasteles.” 

“Puerto Rican food?” Dean frowned. Did he know anyone Puerto Rican? He pulled out his own phone. “Let me make a few calls, see if I can’t scrounge at least something up for you while you wait for Rosa to call you.”

Cas nodded and found an orange in the bowl on the island. He peeled it and ate it while he listened to Dean making calls. Finally Dean smiled and gave him a thumbs up. 

“So I found someone, my friend Elizar’s mom is from Puerto Rico and she actually has a small business that she runs out of her home making authentic foods from back home. He called her on another phone while we were talking, and she has food already cooked right now. He’s going to run some of it by in about an hour. I think by that point Rosa should have gotten back to you, it’ll be after school by then.”

Cas smiled. “Have you ever had Puerto Rican food? It’s different than Mexican. I like them both and normally I like the rich flavors of Mexican food, but I just have _such_ a taste for the Puerto Rican food.”

“I can’t say that I have, but it took forever before I tried sushi. What is pasteles?” Dean asked.

“Ok, so you know what a tamale is, right?”

Dean nodded. “Yep, but I only like authentic ones.”

“Ok, so tamales are made with corn meal, and the stuff inside is different but for comparison reasons, that is what pasteles are like. They’re made with plantains, which are a non-sweet banana, and Rosa makes some with chicken and some with pork. I love them. And Puerto Rican Spanish rice is way different than Mexican Spanish rice. Both are good, they’re just different,” Cas explained.

“Well, now I’m hungry. Maybe if I like it I’ll see about getting some recipes. Would Rosa come and show me how to make certain dishes?” Dean asked.

“I honestly have no idea, but I can ask her.” 

Dean grabbed an orange for himself. It would have to do until Elizar got there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was closer to an hour and a half before Elizar arrived. By that time Charlie had already left and Gabe had arrived. Dean had gone back to his office while Cas had headed to his sewing room. He’d bought more material and was busy making curtains for the babies’ room when the buzzer for the front gates rang through the house. He turned off the sewing machine and hauled himself up from his chair to waddle back into the kitchen. Dean was just walking in with a man Cas had never met before when he arrived. The man was a Beta and talking animatedly to Dean about the food he had brought. Cas detected an accent. The smell of the food reached him and his stomach growled. Dean looked up, noticing he was there and held out a hand to him.

“Eli, this here’s my mate, Cas. Cas, this is Elizar, but he usually goes by Eli.” Dean introduced them. 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Eli, and thank you so very much for making the trip out here with food. I hate to be a burden,” Cas said as he shook the man’s hand.

“Oh, you’re not a burden at all. I told my mami that I knew of a pregnant Omega craving Puerto Rican food, and she told me to come over immediately. In case you can’t tell, she loaded me up with enough food to last you a while,” Eli laughed and pointed to four very large bags jam packed with food. Cas went to them immediately.

“Oh, frozen ones! Thank you!” Cas took out the pasteles in the first bag and began stacking them in the freezer just as Sam walked in with Gabe.

“Oh, wow, what is that smell? It smells fantastic!” Sam asked as he approached the island.

“Puerto Rican food. I was craving it so Dean’s friend was kind enough to bring some over. Have you ever tried it?” Cas looked up at his brother and his brother-in-law. Sam nodded, but Gabe shook his head.

“I have tried foods from just about all over the world. Looks like your mom stocked Cas up for at least the next three months on pasteles,” He laughed and looked at Eli, who grinned and shrugged.

“She loves to cook, what can I say?”

Dean got out the plates since it was close to when he would have normally made dinner anyway and watched as his mate doled all the food out. Eli bid them good evening and left, but not before getting a hug from Cas. As they sat down to eat, Cas dug in, devouring half of his rice before the others had gotten past a few bites.

“Wow, baby, you’re hungry. I should have made something for lunch earlier, I’m sorry,” Dean said.

“It’s ok, I wouldn’t have been happy with anything but this anyway. This is really good, almost as good as Rosa’s,” Cas pointed at the rice with his fork. “How do you like it?”

“It’s really good, but what is this slimy thing?” Gabe asked as he poked at his pastele. Cas chuckled.

“It’s the Puerto Rican version of a tamale, but better if you ask me.”

They finished their food and Cas sat back, letting out a contented sigh as he rubbed his belly.

“The pups like it,” he said, grinning.

“That’s good. It was really good food; I liked it,” Dean said as he got up and started collecting the empty plates.

“Gabe and I are going out. Did you need me to bring anything back?” Sam said as he and Gabe got up.

“No, I don’t think so. Have a good time,” Dean said. 

“Yes, have a good night.” Cas added as they left.

“So what do you want to do tonight, gorgeous?” Dean came up behind his mate as he got up from his seat and wrapped his arms as much around the man’s belly as he could.

“Anything you want to do is fine by me,” Cas replied as he leaned back.

“How does a movie and something called tembleque sound?” Dean asked. Cas turned around grinned.

“Eli brought tembleque? Yes!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are you hungry now too? Lol. If you've never had PR food, you're missing out. It's not all fantastic (you'll NEVER get me to eat blood sausage!!!!), and I have a very sensitive palate to start with, but a lot of it is good. The same could be said for any food from any culture. And I am particularly fond of Mexican food too. I've been privy to real, homemade tamales, and let me tell you, there is no going back from that. There's just not.
> 
> So leave a comment, and sorry I was AWOL this weekend. I've been writing so much that I just kind of burned out and needed a break. I hope you like this chapter though!


	32. Ultrasounds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Dean head to the doctor for a check up and an ultrasound. One of the pups decides it's time for daddy and papa to know its gender...
> 
> Once they're back home, Sam comes to Dean for a heart to heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for not being around and posting stuff on time! I have not been feeling well at all. I have some kind of virus, but on top of that I'm not sleeping more than maybe 4 hours a night, so motivation? Yeah, it's like asleep somewhere else, cause it's not here with me! When I am awake, I'm sitting and staring at the walls. When I sleep, it's plagued by nightmares that leave me feeling like I'm not getting any rest at all. The virus has me running low grade fevers, aching, and with frequent migraines. On top of all that I managed to tear my achilles tendon on my left foot. Go me! 
> 
> Last night I broke down and took Melatonin, after not taking any for a few weeks (it had basically stopped working), and I got about 7 hours of sleep. So I'm slightly more "alive" today, lol. Foot is killing me, I have a migraine, and I'm aching, but I'm moderately alert, so that's something, right? 
> 
> Good thing I had most of this story written. I still have parts to add to it though, but this? It was already written. I do hope you enjoy it as I go back to my semi-zombie state and try to stay warm with my coffee. I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm not asking for sympathy, I just wanted you all to know that I have NOT dropped off the face of the planet, I'm just not feeling well. And to think, I have to still scrounge up some kind of motivation for the Valentine's Day Challenge on Tumblr. I don't know where I'm going to drudge THAT up from. Blah.

“So how are you feeling, Mr. Winchester?”

“Honestly? Like I’m about to explode. I’ve been cramping. I read up on that so I think the Braxton Hicks are starting,” Cas replied. Doctor Sanders was busy measuring his belly but she looked up and smiled.

“I know the feeling. Any discharge or fluid leaking?” she asked.

“N-no! What does that mean?” He sat up on his elbows and looked at her.

“Well, we’re getting real close now. Multiple births rarely ever make it full term. I’m surprised the contractions are only just now starting. Two weeks from now makes the eight month mark. You’re going to have two nice, big, healthy pups. The longer you keep them in, the better off they’ll be.” She put away the measuring tape and jotted something down in his chart before she pulled out her stethoscope. “Everything good between you and your mate? Stress can bring on early delivery.”

“Everything is fine with Dean and me. We got married last summer.” He wiggled the fingers on his left hand, and she looked up to see the ring there.

“I think you mentioned that a few months ago. I’m happy for you. He’s taking good care of you then?”

“Oh, yes. Dean is amazing. He’s very loving and attentive. He bought me a table to do hydro massages. Those have been helping my aching back. It hurts almost all the time now, and I can’t lie down on my stomach anymore for Dean to massage my back, so the table does it. We keep the setting on low and I ache so much less now,” he replied.

“I know, he called me to tell me about it. I’m glad it’s helping. It’s a much healthier alternative to medication.” She put her stethoscope away and jotted something else down in his chart. “So, are you ready for an ultrasound? I’d like to see if they’re turning yet.” 

“Oh, yes. Call Dean in here, he’s in the waiting room,” he told her. She picked up a phone on the wall and spoke softly into it. 

“He’s on his way. I’ll get the machine ready.” He turned his head enough that he could see past his belly to where she was plugging in the ultrasound machine. As she was grabbing a bottle of conductivity gel and a towel, Dean walked in. Cas chuckled at the look of excitement on his mate’s face.

“We’re going to look at the pups?” Dean asked.

“We sure are,” Doctor Sanders said. Dean smiled wide as he walked around the table to stand on the other side where he had a clear view of the screen. The doctor pulled Cas’ shirt up and applied the cold gel before starting.

“Oh!” Cas exclaimed as soon as the first pup appeared on the screen. With this new technology they had a perfect 3D image of their child’s face.

“It’s beautiful.” Dean’s voice hitched and his eyes stung with tears as he took in the tiny face on the screen. The pup was trying to suck its thumb, but he could see the tiny button nose and perfect lips. He could see how much it looked like Cas. They had wanted to be surprised as to the sex of their pups, but the doctor slid the wand down at the same moment the pup opened its legs. 

They had a daughter.

“Oh, Dean, you see that? It’s a little girl!” Cas was crying and Dean smoothed the hair off his forehead and leaned down to kiss him.

“I see, she’s so beautiful. Looks like you. Is that our Gabriella?”

Cas sniffled and nodded. “Yes, that’s our Ellie.”

“Pretty name. I’m sorry, I know you wanted to be surprised. I didn’t expect her to open up quite so fast.” Doctor Sanders said. She was moving the wand over to the second pup, marking their size as she went along. “They’re in separate sacs, which I told you on the first ultrasound, but pup A has a notable size increase over pup B. Do you want to know what pup B’s sex is?”

“Yes, we already know the first, might as well know the second.” Cas looked up at Dean who nodded in agreement.

“Ok, so…” The wand slid lower. “We have…another girl.”

“Two girls. We have two girls, Cas!” Dean sobbed. 

“Molly,” Cas said softly. 

“Pretty names,” the doctor said.

“Dean chose them. If we have a son later, the name is my pick,” Cas told her.

“Ok, so right now it looks like…Ellie, did you call her? She’s about five and a half pounds. Molly is a little more than four. They need to cook as long as possible in your little oven here. I’d like Molly to reach as close to five as possible, and give their lungs a chance to fully form.” She snapped the pictures necessary and printed them out. Once she had turned the machine off she wiped Cas’ belly down.

“His cervical plug is already thinning. You could go at any time now so I’m going to put you on bed rest. Bathroom trips only. Just kick back and wait it out. I’d rather we be overly cautious and have two healthy pups than to not be careful enough and they come before their lungs are fully formed,” she told them. Dean was helping his mate to sit up and they both turned to look at her.

“Good thing you have another blanket still to finish,” Dean joked as he looked at Cas. 

“It’s pretty much done, I just need to finish the booties and hats. Guess I better get moving,” his mate laughed.

“So, provided you don’t pop between now and then, I want to see you back here in two weeks. Once you’re past the eight month mark I want to see you once a week. I’d like to see you get as close to your due date as possible,” Doctor Sanders said.

“Is it still safe if he wants to birth at home?” Dean asked.

“I don’t see why not, do you have a nurse or doula on call already?” 

“I’ve been looking at a few, I suppose I should get cracking and pick one,” Dean sighed.

“I’ll provide a list of ones I trust, but keep my emergency number on hand just in case.” She went to the desk in the corner and pulled out a piece of paper. “These are all good people, well trained in their profession.” She handed the paper to Dean.

“Thank you. I’ll set up the appointment now. See you in two weeks,” he told her.

She smiled and nodded. “Yes, see you in two weeks.”

Out in the car Cas got to thinking.

“What’s on your mind?” Dean asked him.

“Our pups are both girls,” Cas replied.

“Yeah, I’m thrilled. Two princesses,” Dean beamed happily. 

“Identifiable as female. Neither one has a penis,” Cas looked at his mate.

“Oh. That means neither one is an Alpha,” Dean realized. Cas nodded.

“Doesn’t make a difference to me. They’re our daughters. I don’t care what their orientations are. They’re my children, and I will love them no matter what, and treat them like the amazing human beings that I know they will grow up to be. No matter what we will teach them to have self-respect and to treat everyone equally. We have the potential to give the next generation the power to make a true difference, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do,” Dean said. And he meant it. Cas smiled and reached over to take his mate’s hand.

“You’re right. And that’s exactly what we’ll do.”

 

“So? Everything good?” Sam asked as soon as they walked through the door. Dean was cranky after finding more reporters hovering when they pulled up but Cas patted his hand, letting him know he’d field any questions from family.

“Everything is great. We didn’t intend to find out, but one of the pups decided to show us their bits, so we know what we’re having,” Cas said excitedly. Sam’s face lit up.

“Oh yeah? What are they?”

Cas looked at Dean who smiled and nodded. He turned back to face Sam.

“Girls. They’re both girls, fraternal.”

“Yeah!” Sam clapped his hands together excitedly before grabbing Cas and hugging him. “Girls!”

“What is all the commotion down here?” Gabe asked as he came down the stairs.

“They’re girls!” Sam cried.

“I’m pretty sure they’re not.” Gabe laughed. Sam rolled his eyes and placed a hand over his brother in law’s belly. 

“The pups are girls.”

“Oh, awesome! Little princesses to spoil!” Gabe cried. He hugged his brother and then Dean too.

“So who’s coming home in the bee outfit?” Sam asked.

“We are hoping to have them here, at home. But as for who’s first to wear it, they may not be able to right away. They’re pretty tiny,” Cas explained.

“How tiny is tiny? Not like two pounds or anything, you’re too big for them to be that little,” Gabe eyed his brother’s belly.

“No. One is about five and a half pounds, the other is just barely over four. I’m now on bed rest til they’re here. Doctor Sanders wants me to stay in bed in hopes that they’ll stay in longer. They want Molly to get bigger.” Cas caressed his belly lovingly. He wanted his pups to both be big and strong.

“Molly? You did decide on that name?” Gabe asked. “I like it.”

“Molly Katherine. We chose our other pup’s name carefully though,” Cas looked up at Dean who smiled as he slipped an arm around his Omega’s waist.

“If it’s ok with you, Gabe, we chose our daughter’s name to honor you, for everything you’ve done for us since coming back into Cas’ life. From saving Sam to putting us up when we needed a place to stay. We’re wanting to call her Gabriella Rose. Ellie for short,” Dean said. 

“Oh…that’s…” Gabe couldn’t find the words to express how happy he was at hearing Dean say that so he just pulled him into a hug.

“I think he’s honored,” Sam said with a chuckle.

“I’d say so too.” Dean patted his brother in law on the back. “Come on, I want to get Cas settled in bed.”

Dean led his mate upstairs and as Cas changed into one of the comfortable gowns his mate had bought for him, he pulled the covers back and fluffed up the pillows. Once Cas was lying back comfortably he found the bag of yarn and needles and handed them over.

“Where’s your phone?”

Cas pointed to the nightstand where he had set it down.

“Ok, so I’m going to go make us some lunch. If you need anything at all, let me know and I’ll get it. What would you like to eat?”

“Grilled cheese? With bacon?” Cas asked.

“That does sound good. You got it, babe. I’ll bring up some fruit and milk too.” Dean said before heading down to the kitchen. He opened the fridge door and started pulling out the things he would need.

“Hey, Dean?” 

He turned around to see Sam standing at the island.

“Where’s Gabe?” he asked.

“Oh, he was only here to bring me lunch. He had to get back to his shop. Can I talk to you about something?” Sam sat down at the island and looked up at his brother.

“Sure, you can talk to me about anything. What’s on your mind?” Dean pulled out a frying pan and got started making the bacon.

“It’s Gabe,” Sam replied.

Dean turned to look at him again. “Everything ok with Gabe? I thought you guys were happy.”

“Oh, yeah, we’re great. I told you, he wants me as his mate, and I’m just afraid he’s getting frustrated with me because I haven’t let him claim me yet,” Sam said.

“He understands that you went through hell with your first mate. And he loves you. You need to remember that he has abandonment issues too. As long as you don’t make him feel like all the effort he’s putting in is for nothing, I think he’s going to stick around.” Dean grabbed a plate and lined it with paper towels. The bacon was almost done.

“Yeah, I keep that in mind. Do you think I have to worry about his ex coming back? She’s been gone a long time, but what if she’s one of those people that hears their ex moved on and is happy, so they come back to try and ruin their happiness?” Sam asked. Dean flipped the bacon and turned around again to look at his brother.

“And what if your ex does the same thing? You can’t worry about stuff like that. There’s too many ‘what ifs’ that will hold you back if you let them. Let yourself be happy, Sammy. I know you love him, and in a way you never loved anyone else before.”

“He asked me to marry him.” The words tumbled from Sam’s mouth in a rush and he sucked his lower lip into his mouth once they were out as he stared up at his brother.

“Wow. He really does love you. What did you say?” Dean asked as he moved the bacon to the plate.

“I don’t want to lose him.” 

“Well, no shit. What did you _say_?” Dean pressed.

“I said I wanted to be mated first,” Sam replied. 

Dean pulled out the griddle and started on the sandwiches. “Ok, I can understand your reservations. Do you want to marry him though? Like, honestly. Not because Cas and I got married, but because you genuinely want to spend the rest of your life with him. Is that what you want?”

“Honestly?” Sam was still chewing on his lower lip. Dean came around the island as the griddle heated up and patted his brother on the back.

“Yes, honestly.”

“I do. I want to get married, maybe adopt a couple of kids, be claimed, and…I want that with Gabe. That scares the ever loving shit out of me. The idea of taking another mate, of starting a new life with him, and trusting him explicitly not to hurt me, and of raising a family? It’s the scariest thing in the world.”

“It’s also the most exciting. Gabe loves you so much. Sometimes you need to take a chance. He’s not going to hurt you. I couldn’t say that about Luke, but I can about Gabe.” Dean went back to the griddle, buttering the bread and starting the sandwiches.

“I’m going over to his place Saturday. I think…” Sam ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. “I think I’m going to do it. Let him claim me.”

Dean spun around and grinned at him. “Good for you! I think he’s going to really make you happy. Can you wait to get married though? Until after the pups are here? Cas can’t attend it before that.”

“Dude, a wedding needs to be planned, and I haven’t the first clue how to plan one. So it’s not taking place any time soon.” Sam gave a nervous little laugh and got up. “I’ve got finals to start studying for. I can’t believe I’m done in May.”

“Let me know how everything goes,” Dean told him.

“I will,” Sam said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now you know what the pups are. They're girls for a reason, in case you couldn't tell in the conversation out in the car. We're making points here, and trying to make the world a safer place for everyone. Their daughters are not Alphas. This means they need to work harder and faster to make this world a better place for Omegas and Betas everywhere.
> 
> I hope you like the chapter. I know I'm slow in responding to comments right now, but I am responding! I'm just not feeling so hot. Once I am, I'll get to all of my comments. Please have patience with me!


	33. The Circle of Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time. Cas goes into labor and the family comes together to help and support them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day. I was exhausted (still not sleeping well), but my best friend used her buy one get one coupon for coffee, so we got a coffee this evening and went grocery shopping. I lead an exciting life, don't I? I didn't have any volunteer's to be my valentine this year (Like I ever do, lol), so no one to spoil. For me, it's all about tomorrow when the candy is half price. There are Kit Kats and Reeses just calling my name, lol. I do that after every holiday though. 
> 
> The virus seems to have passed (finally!), but I'm still not sleeping. And my foot is killing me still. I'm wearing a soft brace now, can't wear a shoe without it. I need to find money to invest in a hard brace because I stretch out in my sleep and tear it further. I'm so active, always walking or moving about that it takes especially long for my feet to heal when I tear tendons. Not fun! I'm still nursing the arch I tore in my right foot and now I'm nursing a torn tendon in my left foot. Right where the achilles attaches to the heel bone. The sad thing is that I adapt to the pain and end up causing more damage. Trying not to cripple myself here! Point is, I'm still not 100% back to my old self. I guess for the moment I'm a little burned out. I'll catch up on the other fics in due time. So sorry about that guys!
> 
> I hope you enjoy the chapter though!

Dean watched his brother leave, smiling to himself as he thought about everything Sam had gone through, and how far he had come in the last few years. His baby brother finally had a worthy mate, and would be treated well. That was all he had ever wanted for him. To hear Sam talk about marriage and starting a family both excited him and made him anxious. As happy as he was for his little brother, he couldn’t help but worry about him. Sam would move out soon, and he wouldn’t need Dean anymore. The anxious feeling stayed with him the rest of the time he was preparing lunch. He got down a tray and filled it with the sandwiches, milk, and a fruit salad. As he walked into the bedroom he was met by his mate, standing at the foot of the bed with his hands on his hips.

“What’s wrong?” Cas demanded.

“What? Nothing’s wrong.” Dean moved past him to set the tray down on top of the dresser. “I was cooking.”

“Dean, stop. I can feel your fear, your anxiety. Something happened. Talk to me.” Cas followed him over to the dresser and waited for him to speak up. Dean sighed and moved past him to close the door. He didn’t want Sam overhearing them.

“So I talked to Sam downstairs. Your brother asked him to marry him.” 

“I don’t understand, why would that make you upset?” Cas asked.

“It doesn’t. I’m happy for him. He’s talking about letting Gabe claim him this Saturday. Officially become his mate. The wedding would come later. But I got to thinking. See, I raised Sammy. I was his father after our mom died, when our own father didn’t know how to be. I cooked for him, I took care of him, saw him off the school, _I_ was the one that did _everything_ for him. I started my business so I could take care of him, keep him safe, and it flourished. So I was able to take care of him and Ellen and Bobby, and everyone else I cared about. Then Sam met Luke. I was happy that he’d found someone to love, someone he wanted to take as a mate. I encouraged him to follow his heart. It was stupid on my part. We should have known the guy was a lying bastard. After he had nearly killed my brother, I went in, kicked his ass and took Sammy out of there. I paid to have the claim broken, got Sam the medical help he needed, got him into therapy, and I brought him home to live with me. I continued to take care of him. Now he’s finally ready to take a new mate, a better mate, one that’s actually worthy of his affections and I just…worry. I feel like I’m losing control. I need to keep him safe, but he’s going to leave, and his safety will fall to a new Alpha, and…” He floundered at that point, not sure how to express in words exactly what he was feeling.

“And you don’t like losing control. I get it. But honey, you can’t take care of everyone all the time. Once in awhile you need to let others take care of you too. And that’s my job. We’re about to have our pups. They need you. _I_ need you. You are always going to be needed. Sam will still need you to be his big brother. You need to trust that Gabe will do everything for him that you already do, but it’s up to him to do what you can’t.” Cas wanted to hug his mate close, but his giant belly would not permit him to, so he settled for taking his husband’s hand and kissing it. Dean gave a small smile and though the anxiety he felt had eased some, Cas still sensed it lingering.

“Thank you, sweetheart. I needed to hear that. And you’re right. Gabe will take very good care of him. I need to learn to not only ease up, but to refocus. You and our pups are my priority now. So come on, get back in bed, and we’ll have lunch before it gets cold.”

Dean guided him back to the bed before heading to the dresser for the tray. He went around to the other side of the bed and sat down, putting the tray between them. Cas smiled as he picked up a plate with two sandwiches. 

“Oh…this is so good…” Cas moaned around a mouthful of cheese, bread, and bacon.

“I’m glad. I didn’t know what fruit to bring you so I made a quick salad. It’s just some berries.” Dean uncovered the bowl of fruit, smiling when his mate’s eyes lit up at the sight. It wasn’t difficult to please his mate, especially when it came to food, and he was glad. They finished their lunch and Dean put the tray back on the dresser. Cas was rubbing his belly, grimacing and that worried him.

“Are you in pain?” Dean asked.

“Braxton Hicks. They’re not always bothersome, but combined with kicking pups they can be.” Cas tried to adjust the pillows again but Dean reached over to do it for him. Once he was settled back comfortably Dean placed a hand on his belly, counting out the time between the contractions. After a half hour they finally seemed to calm down. 

“I don’t know if I’m more worried now about our pups or if I’ll be more worried once they’re here,” he laughed. Cas smiled.

“I wish I knew myself.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The weeks seemed to drag by, and Dean was constantly on edge the entire time. Three trips to the ER when the contractions wouldn’t stop had frazzled every one of his nerves. He put Charlie in charge of running the shops so he could devote his time to his mate. It was the day after Cas’ second trip in to see Doctor Sanders as he was in the bathroom stripping down for a shower that the worst contraction yet tore through him. He was alone, Dean was elsewhere in the house and that scared him more than anything. Clutching his belly he staggered back into the bedroom, intending to get his phone but he was hit with another contraction nearly as bad as the first. He went for the door instead. Pulling it open he could already hear footsteps pounding up the stairs.

“Cas! Baby! What’s the matter?!” Dean raced down the hall and into the room, catching his mate just as his legs gave out.

“Dean, I think this is it. Oh God it _hurts_!” Cas cried. Dean scooped his husband up and started for the bed.

“No, the tub!” Cas begged.

“Yeah? You’re sure?” Dean turned in the direction of the bathroom.

“I don’t want to have them in the bed. It’s so messy.” Cas groaned as another contraction hit him. Dean sat his mate on the closed toilet seat and hurried to get the tub filled.

“G-give me the phone. I n-need to call the doula.” Cas held out one hand and Dean handed it over. As he got the tub filled, Cas called their doula, Tess. After confirming she was on her way, he hung up and left the phone on the sink. Dean scooped him up again and lowered him into the water.

“I’m going to call Sam and Gabe, ok? And Ellen. Everything’s going to be alright, baby.” Dean grabbed the phone and called his brother.

“Sammy?”

“Dean? Is everything alright? You don’t sound good.” 

“It’s time, Cas is in labor,” Dean said.

“Shit! Ok, I’ll call Gabe, he’s at work. We’ll be there as soon as we can.” 

The call disconnected and he placed another one to Ellen.

“Sweetheart? Is it time?” Were the first words out of her mouth. Dean gave a strained laugh.

“Yeah, El, it’s time.”

“Do you want me to come?” she asked.

“Yeah, I need you here, please.” He needed the one person in his life that he looked at like a mother figure. 

“I’m grabbing my things now. I’ll be there as soon as I can. You best call his doctor, honey,” she told him.

“Yeah, I’ll call her now.”

The next ten minutes were spent with Dean calling his security to make sure they let his family and the doula in, and calling Doctor Sanders. He called Charlie, and she was on her way as well. Their doula, Tess, a Beta even calmer than Sam (Dean didn’t think anyone was calmer than his brother) arrived first. She came straight up to their bedroom and into the bathroom.

“Water birth?” she asked as she set her bags down.

“He changed his mind last minute. Doesn’t want to ruin the bed,” Dean explained.

“It’s less painful in water anyway. Pups went longer than I expected. I have the hospital on standby in case there are any complications. I called Doctor Sanders but she said you had already called her. She’s on standby as well,” Tess said as she knelt down next to the tub. “Are you timing them?”

“Five m-minutes apart.” Cas said.

“Ok. Water break yet?”

“N-no,” he replied.

“I might have to break the first one. Let’s hope I don’t.” She pulled out a stopwatch and when the next contraction hit, she timed it. 

“Oh!” Cas cried out suddenly.

“What was that?” Dean asked as he watched his mate’s belly seem to ripple. Suddenly the water was tinged with blood.

“Water broke,” Tess explained.

Dean was glad the bathroom was large; it gave him the space to pace nervously as he watched Tess working on his mate. It was a huge tub, big enough to fit three to four people, a luxury he’d had installed after buying the house but it caught him off guard when Tess stripped off her socks and shoes and climbed into it.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I need to see how dilated he is.” She coaxed Cas into lifting his legs so she could check his cervix.

“Well, we’re about halfway there. You’re at six centimeters.” She looked up at Dean. “Can you gather towels, and I would prep the bed now for when this is over. He’ll be bleeding for the next few weeks as well as being incredibly sore.”

“Yeah, of course.” Dean went to the cabinet on the other side of the tub and began pulling towels out. He knew there were a bunch more in the laundry room waiting to be washed so after stacking those on the toilet he went and threw them in the washer. As he was coming out, Sam and Gabe were coming down the hall.

“How is he?” Gabe asked.

“Uncomfortable. We’re between contractions for the moment. Tess says we’re already about halfway there,” Dean replied.

“I’ll go put on some coffee and tea,” Sam said as he started backing up towards the stairs.

“Thanks,” Dean called out to him.

Gabe followed Dean into the bedroom. “Where is he?”

“He decided he wanted a water birth. He’s been reading up on different things lately and it’s supposed to be less painful in water, and easier to clean up. I really hope that’s true.” Dean motioned for his brother-in-law to follow him into the bathroom.

“Whoa! That’s more than I ever wanted to see of Cassie!” Gabe averted his eyes when he saw his naked brother in the tub.

“Well I’m not pushing pups out in a damn tux!” Cas hissed as another contraction hit. “Fuck! These hurt like a bitch!” He reached out for his mate, and Dean knelt down next to Tess and took his hand.

“I’m so sorry, baby,” Dean told him as he kissed his Omega’s hand. 

“For what?” Cas asked.

“It’s my fault you’re suffering right now. I can feel your pain and I would give anything to take it away.” The Alpha was on the verge of tears, and he wiped at his eyes with his free hand.

“Dean, pups don’t get here by magic. Someone has to carry them, and I’m honored to be the one to carry ours, but I’m not doing this again anytime soon!” 

Gabe chuckled, and so did Tess. Cas looked over at his brother.

“So how’s mated life treating you? Good?” he asked.

“It’s fantastic. Sam’s finally settled in at the house, but we decided we want to move,” Gabe replied.

“Move? Where?” Cas didn’t want them to move far away, not now that he actually _had_ a pack.

“Well, actually, we want to move closer. Sam is happy with me, but neither of us are happy being far away from you guys, so we’ve been looking at houses in the area. We found a wonderful old Victorian about three blocks east of here. It’s bigger than our current house and has a room on the first floor that Sam would like to turn into a home office. The kitchen was completely remodeled too and puts my current one to shame. There’s a big back yard and a spacious front yard as well. It has four bedrooms upstairs, a living room, dining room, den, and extra room on the first floor, plus a finished basement. We want kids at some point, so the extra space will be nice. It’s our favorite of all the ones we’ve looked at so far,” Gabe explained.

“Oh, I’d love to have you closer!” Cas cried.

“Me too. You’ll be within walking distance, which means our pups will know one another,” Dean said. Gabe smiled and nodded.

“We’re putting in a bid tomorrow. Fingers crossed we get it.”

Sam came back to the bedroom and followed the sound of their voices to the bathroom.

“Oh, water birth? I’ve read up on these,” Sam said. “Do you need me to get anything else?”

“Help me ready the bed for afterwards? And set up the bassinets,” Dean said as he stood up again.

“No, you stay with Cassie. I’ll help Sam,” Gabe told him.

“Thanks.”

Gabe patted his shoulder before following Sam back to the bedroom.

“They’re nice. Whose brother is whose?” Tess asked.

“Our brothers are mated. Gabe is Cas’ older brother and Sam is my younger brother,” Dean replied.

“That’s nice. I see that a lot in packs. Something about the scents being compatible amongst families, especially if two people are true mates.” 

“Cas is my true mate,” Dean said.

“Oh how wonderful! No wonder he’s feeling your pain so deeply.” Tess smiled at Cas and he gave a pained smile back. Dean had to agree though, he was feeling every single contraction, and they were pure hell.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ellen arrived and joined with helping Sam and Gabe before she came to the bathroom. She leaned down to kiss the top of Dean’s head before moving to the head of the tub to kiss the top of Cas’.

“How are you doing, sugar?” she asked the Omega.

“Hurts like hell, but I’m surviving,” he replied.

“I know that’s true,” she laughed.

Tess checked Cas again. “Seven,” she announced.

Sam appeared with a stool from God knows where and Dean got up to sit on it. He groaned at how his knees ached with relief.

“I’m going to go make some soup for Cas and a sandwich for you, Dean. Did you want one too, Tess?” he asked.

“Please, it would be much appreciated,” she said, smiling up at him.

“I’m not hungry,” Cas grumbled.

“But you need to keep your energy up,” Tess reminded him. He whined but didn’t argue. She looked up at Sam again. “If you have pudding or jello, bring some of that for him too. And tea, if you have any.”

“I’m already boiling the water for it. I brought some decaffeinated,” he said.

“Good, we want to avoid caffeine from now until his pups are weaned.”

“Kill me now,” Cas muttered.

Dean snorted but kept his mouth shut. Sam left to go get the food. Ellen floated in and out and when Charlie finally arrived she came bursting into the bathroom, her usual bubbly self.

“Hey, you’re all over the news right now. The media is parked nearby; I drove past them, and they saw all of the people arriving, so they put one and one together and figured out that Cas is in labor. They’re saying mayoral candidate Dean Winchester’s mate is getting ready to deliver their pup at home. How did you manage to keep it quiet that you’re having twins?” she asked.

“It wasn’t easy, trust me,” Dean replied. She leaned down to kiss to top of Cas’ head.

“How are you doing, hon? Contractions bad yet?” 

“I feel like I’m being ripped apart from the inside out,” Cas replied. Another contraction hit, this one making him grit his teeth and growl. His grip on Dean’s hand tightened tenfold and the Alpha winced but kept quiet. It lasted longer than the last one had. 

“The water’s getting cold.” Cas shivered, his skin breaking out in goosebumps. Tess drained the water and refilled it. Sam returned with Gabe, and they were both carrying trays of food. Dean set the sandwich he was given on his knee and took the soup to feed to his mate. Cas looked up gratefully as his husband spooned the broth into his mouth. He managed to eat half of the soup before another contraction hit. When it passed, Sam handed Dean the jello he had found in the fridge and watched as his brother lovingly fed it to his mate. After a few bites Cas pushed his hand away.

“No more,” he groaned.

“He’s at eight. This is moving along quickly. I’m surprised since it’s his first,” Tess said after checking Cas again.

“Good, the faster it goes, the less time he’ll suffer. I don’t want him suffering.” Dean pushed back the sweat-damp hair on his mate’s forehead and leaned over to kiss him.

“Eat your food, Dean,” Cas told him. Dean snickered and held his sandwich up. 

“Yes, dear.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Apparently Tess had spoken too soon. Early evening faded into night and then into early morning, and Cas was holding steady at eight centimeters. Dean wanted badly to pace, but he remained sitting on the stool, only leaving twice to use the other bathroom and get a drink of water. His ass was numb and his back ached, but his mate was clinging to him and he was focused on making this as comfortable as possible for Cas.

When his mate’s back began to spasm from sitting up so long in the tub, Ellen brought in a pillow, pulling him forward enough to plunk it down in the water behind him. Cas’ breasts were leaking a clear fluid which had alarmed Dean, until Tess told him it was perfectly normal. The contractions were starting to come faster now, and Cas was crying. It broke Dean’s heart to hear it. When Tess announced that Cas was finally at nine centimeters, Dean stood up and stripped down to his tee shirt and boxers.

“What are you doing?” Cas asked him.

“What we practiced in Lamaze,” Dean replied as he climbed into the tub, removing the pillow from behind his mate and sliding in behind him. Cas tilted his head back enough to capture Dean’s lips with his own.

“Thank you.”

“I wish this was me going through this instead of you. I hate seeing you in pain.” Dean’s voice was thick with emotion, and tears were sliding down his cheeks. 

“No, honey, please don’t cry.” Cas grabbed his mate’s hands and brought them up, placing them on his belly. “I told you, it’s my honor to bring our pups into this world. And pain is temporary. We’re going to have two precious little girls here soon, focus on that. Please? For me?”

Another contraction hit making the Omega cry out. It lasted for nearly a minute before it eased, and he went limp in his mate’s arms. Dean caught movement from the corner of his eye to find several people hovering in the doorway.

“We got the bassinets set up. Not sure where you want them but since they’re portable I figure you can move them wherever. Right now they’re in a corner of your bedroom. We set up the stroller, the swings, and unpacked the rockers too. Needed something to do,” Gabe said, smiling sheepishly.

“Thank you. You saved me from having to do all of that later by myself. Go into the nursery and on the top shelf of the armoire is a box. It contains the outfits we’re going to dress the pups in. Also, can you grab the blankets Cas made them? They’re hanging over the railing of each crib,” Dean asked.

“Sure, I’ll grab them now.” Gabe turned to leave.

“What about diapers? Grab those too,” Cas added. Gabe nodded and left to get the things Dean had asked for.

“We’ll lay it all out on the bed for you,” Sam said before following his mate out of the room.

“Oh geez, they’re really speculating out there. Implying there are complications. Do you want me to go out there and talk to them? Looking at the cameras there’s a hoard out there. Security can’t get rid of them,” Charlie said as she walked back in the room. She had a tablet in hand, and she showed it to Dean. There were reporters out there by the dozens. She wasn’t kidding.

“Yeah, go and tell them that everything is going well and we’ll make the announcement once they’re here.” Dean kissed his mate’s cheek. “It’s so surreal to know that the city is interested in our lives, and in the birth of our pups. Oh!” He looked back up at Charlie again. “Don’t mention that there are two. Keep all references to how many pups there are neutral.”

She nodded. “You got it, Big Daddy.” 

He snorted at the nickname and watched her leave. 

“Hey, El? Grab my phone out of my jeans there, please.” 

She came in, sitting on the stool and looking through the pockets until she found it. Handing it over, Dean pulled up the cameras for the front gate. He saw Charlie walk out, coming to a stop with security staff on either side of her. For a moment he wished he could hear what she was saying but then he decided to just check the news. There were live reports coming out of almost all stations, including online ones, and he held the camera so Cas could watch as Charlie talked to the media.

_“Can I get everyone’s attention, please? Attention! That includes you in the back Chatty Kathy! I am giving you a damn update, pay ATTENTION! Ok, everyone listening now? Good. Yes, Castiel Winchester is in labor as we speak. There are no, I repeat NO complications thus far. Everything is progressing normally. Dean and Castiel are thrilled over the newest addition to their family and as soon as the birth is over we will have another update. Please do NOT report false information. I don’t think I need to remind you that you can be and WILL be sued if you do. As soon as we have more news to share, I will come and give it.”_

Reporters began shouting questions at her, each trying to be heard over the other as they asked a variety of questions, everything from if they knew what the sex of the pup was to what Dean felt his chances were in the upcoming mayoral election. And there were questions in there about the state of The District and what plans he had for it beyond what had already been done. With Cas as close as he was to giving birth it had been several weeks since he had last returned to check on the progress being made in The District, but both Sam and Gabe had made appearances on his behalf. And he’d followed the news stories that focused on the repairs being made there. Half of the city was praising Dean for working to better the area and improve things for Omegas everywhere, and half was condemning him for changing what, for Alphas everywhere, worked perfectly. Every time he stepped out of his house Betas and Omegas everywhere came up to him, shaking his hand, thanking him, commending him making the changes that were so desperately needed. He accepted their gratitude graciously and took a moment to explain a few things when they were asked, and at Cas’ suggestion asked them to please vote for him in the coming election. 

Progress had been made over the last few months. Apartment buildings had been fixed up and furnished, and Omegas had moved back into them. Houses were still being built, though the cold winter months had slowed the progress down drastically. By late spring there would be thirty new houses available rent-to-own for Omega families. Gabe had begun remodeling a shop right in the center of The District to be his newest bakery and had been holding interviews the last week. He had pledged only to hire Omegas that lived in The District, and so far he had three new employees eager and ready to work. Other business owners had come to scope out the area and so far there was a doctor’s office opening up, a convenience store, and because Dean built it, a park district, complete with a well-equipped park and in-ground pool. 

Dean’s idea to turn the brothel into a fully functioning police station was on hold until after elections. The current mayor was eager to make it happen, but city funding was limited. Dean offered to pay to build the station and his lawyers were already talking to the city council. The less the city had to pay for, the happier they were, and the more agreeable they were. It worked for Dean. As long as they weren’t resisting, he was happy. In the meantime he was hiring off-duty police officers to patrol the streets at night and over the last six months the crime rate had dropped to lower than anywhere else in the city.

The bill to change Omega rights and make it so that those mated could not be restricted from voting by their Alphas was under review, and everything Dean heard suggested it would pass into law. It was a snowball effect, and he was receiving reports of changes being made to Omega Districts everywhere. He was being regaled nationwide as a hero, and the top advocate for Omega rights in the country. The fact that he was an Alpha that treated his mate as his equal was practically unheard of, and that had garnered him nationwide media interest. He had become a celebrity for reasons other than his auto shops, but his business was booming more than ever and this increased his yearly income by almost half. It was definitely not something he was complaining about!

The contractions were starting to come every thirty seconds, and Cas was exhausted. Dean ended up holding him up through them and letting him collapse back against him after each one. He had no idea how it was that Cas was actually falling asleep between each one, but he was. Dean wasn’t even sure he was fully awake during them. Sam and Gabe had come to hover next to Ellen, who was still sitting on the stool. After a particularly strong contraction, Cas actually passed out. Tess checked him.

“We’re at ten, I can feel a pup crowning. It’s go time. We need towels and warm water to clean the pups up. Ellen, can you go into my bag and pull out the kit in there? I’ll need the clamps and scissors. Best to get ready now,” she said.

Ellen found the kit in question which rolled out once it was untied to reveal all of the equipment the doula would need once the first pup was here. Sam was up getting towels, and Gabe ran down to the kitchen to grab a bowl to fill up with water. Everyone was working in sync to help Cas and Dean, which helped ease the Alpha’s stress. He was busy trying to wake his mate up and that had his complete focus.

“Cas, baby, please, wake up.” He patted his mate’s cheek several times, letting out a sigh of relief when another contraction hit and his Omega’s blue eyes fluttered. He groaned but didn’t fully wake up.

“Is this normal? Why isn’t he waking up?” Dean asked worriedly.

“He’s exhausted. Let him rest as much as he can now. Another few minutes and he’ll be wide awake. Remember, he’s going to sleep hard when this is all over, and you need to let him get as much rest as absolutely possible for the next few days,” Tess said.

“Gabe and me, we’re going to stay in my old room and help out.” Sam put a hand on Dean’s shoulder and smiled reassuringly. Dean nodded.

“Thank you. It’s going to take us a bit to establish a routine.”

“I’ll cover meals, darling. You don’t have to cook. I’ll fill your freezer with food that will last you a couple of months, and either me or Jo will bring by hot meals at least twice a week. You focus on your mate and your pups. We’ll cover everything else,” Ellen said. Dean knew better than to argue with her. He just smiled and nodded.

“Dean?” Cas’ eyes finally opened as another contraction hit. He felt the need to push so he did.

“I’m here, baby. Never left you.” Dean kissed his mate’s shoulder and Cas grabbed his hand as another contraction hit. He was barely going ten seconds now between them.

“Her head is almost out. A full head of dark hair,” Tess announced. Dean was excited and apparently so was everyone else. Charlie squealed from the doorway and he looked up at her, grinning.

“I have the camera ready, I can’t _wait_ to meet them!”

“That makes three hundred plus million of us!” Sam cried. 

“N-no one is s-seeing me n-naked!” Cas growled.

“No, baby, this is _not_ going on the news. This is for our personal memories,” Dean assured him.

The next few contractions had Cas in tears. He screamed, despite Tess reminding him that it would make the contractions worse, and he clung to Dean as he bore down on each one.

“Got her head out, turning her now!” Tess announced. She carefully turned the pup face up. The next contraction freed one shoulder and Tess popped the second shoulder out. One more push had the pup out. She lifted the pup out of the water and quickly cleared her nose and mouth. Cas collapsed back against Dean, passing out once again.

“Here she is.” Tess clamped the umbilical cord and handed the pup to Ellen who held her as Tess clipped the cord. Once the pup was freed Ellen wrapped her up in the towel and rubbed vigorously.

“Oh, she’s so gorgeous!” Dean sobbed as he reached out to touch his pup’s cheek. Her little face scrunched up and she started crying. Cas stirred at the sound of his pup’s cries.

“Where is she?” he slurred as he forced his eyes open.

“She’s right here, papa. And she’s gorgeous.” Ellen held the pup out to him and with Dean’s help he took her.

“Oh, Dean…she’s so beautiful!” Cas burst into tears as he looked down at his pup.

“She’s scared. This is all new. Nursing her will calm her down,” Tess said.

“I-I don’t know how.” Cas looked up her with a helpless expression. They had discussed it in Lamaze class but discussing it and actually applying what he had learned were two different things. With Tess’ help he managed to get his pup latched on, and she immediately began to suckle.

“Oh, that feels so weird,” Cas said. Dean sat up a little more so he could look over his mate’s shoulder.

 

“She looks like you, babe. She’s absolutely perfect.” 

Cas smiled up at him. “She is, isn’t she.”

“What’s her name?” Tess asked as she drained the tub and refilled it. Sam helped her dispose of the placenta, and she took a few minutes to jot down the birth time.

“Gabriella Rose,” Dean replied.

Tess smiled as she wrote the pup’s name down. “That’s beautiful.”

The contractions were starting again, and Ellen took the sleeping pup back. She handed her over to Gabe who got her cleaned up. He disappeared into the bedroom with her, and Sam followed.

“Is it always this fast with twins?” Dean asked.

“Sometimes. Sometimes it takes an hour or more. Ideally I’d like Cas to get a break to rest, but if this pup comes quickly we can get him cleaned up and in bed within the hour,” Tess replied. Cas groaned on the next contraction as he sought out Dean’s hands and clutched at them desperately.

“Hey El? There are some things in a bag in the top drawer of the dresser. It’s stuff for Cas, can you grab it and bring it in here?” Dean asked.

“Of course, sweetheart.” She kissed the top of his head before heading into the bedroom. Charlie was still hovering in the doorway.

“Do you need anything?” she asked.

“Water, I’m so thirsty.” Cas replied.

“Crushed ice. Water will make him nauseous if he drinks too much of it. And a spoon,” Tess said.

“Got it, I’ll be right back.” 

“She’s in the canal, I can feel her head. Not as much hair as Gabriella,” Tess mused.

“Sounds like me then; I was a bald baby,” Dean laughed. The contractions began coming faster and Tess announced where they were at after each contraction. Cas’ belly rippled again as the second sac ruptured, and more blood came out.

“Fuck this burns!” Cas hissed.

“You’re almost there, Cas. She’s crowning now,” Tess told him. Cas whined and squeezed his eyes shut as the next contraction tore through him. Charlie returned with the ice, but he barely got a spoonful before the contractions began to hit him harder and faster.

The second pup came faster, to Cas and Dean’s relief. It only took a few contractions before her head was out, followed quickly by her shoulders.

“She’s a lot smaller,” Tess said. Two more contractions and the pup was out. Cas collapsed back against his mate, this time barely managing to stay awake. Ellen had come back with the bag as well as some clean clothes for Dean, and had a towel ready to take the pup as soon as Tess had her airway clear and the cord clamped and cut.

“Why isn’t she crying?” Dean asked. Cas looked up, watching worriedly as Ellen rubbed the pup vigorously. The first little cry was more of a squeak, but then she was wailing louder than her sister had. Cas let out a nervous laugh and reached out for her.

“Give her here.” 

Ellen handed the pup over as Tess made more notes.

“We still have to weigh them. What is this pup’s name?”

“Molly Katherine,” Cas murmured as he got his pup to latch on. 

“Beautiful names,” Ellen said. “She is nearly bald. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised by how dark both of their hair is. You were a rare pup with the blonde hair.” She looked at Dean. “Got your mama’s hair, and she got her mama’s hair. Everyone else had dark brown. She’s beautiful though, they both are.” 

Dean rested his chin on Cas’ shoulder and watched as his pup nursed. She really was beautiful.

“She looks like Cas, too, but I see Sammy in her. Her hair, it’s closer to his color, don’t you think?”

“We’ll know for sure once it’s dry, and she has more of it,” Cas laughed softly. Molly’s eyes opened at the sound of his voice.

“Oh, her eyes are blue!” Cas touched her cheek and she let go of his nipple to turned towards his hand.

“Aww, she’s trying to catch your scent. You’ll want to hurry and do that with Gabriella too, so she can memorize both of your scents,” Tess told them.

Once the second placenta had been delivered she drained the tub once more and refilled it, this time with much warmer water. After checking to make sure Cas had not torn anywhere, she climbed out, accepting the towel Ellen offered. She dried off before taking her bag with the spare clothes and heading to the other bathroom to take a quick shower.

“How are you feeling, honey?” Dean asked his mate.

“I’m very, very sore, and very tired. And I’m starving,” Cas replied.

“Well after birthing two pups it’s no wonder!” Ellen laughed. “I’ll go make you something to eat. Sam! Get your butt in here and help your brother!” 

She left to go make them food while Sam came in to help. Gabe came to collect Molly while Sam and Dean worked together to help Cas get up and into the shower. Dean stripped down the rest of the way once Sam left and got in to help wash his mate down. Once he’d gotten Cas cleaned up, he helped him into the clean boxer briefs that were lined with pads meant for post-natal bleeding. His belly was still extremely tender and having anticipated this, Dean had gone back to buy the birthing gown he’d spotted all those months earlier. Sure, it was getting used _after_ the actual birth, but it was still roomy and comfortable, and his mate looked beautiful in it. Cas waited while Dean put on his own clothes, and then his mate was helping him into his robe. Leaning heavily on Dean, Cas walked on his own into the bedroom. Tess had Molly stripped down and was weighing her when they walked in.

“Ellie, that’s what you’re calling Gabriella, right? Six pounds, three ounces, nineteen inches long. Molly here is five pounds even, eighteen inches. They’re both bright eyed and healthy,” she announced as she re-secured the pup’s diaper and put her sleeper back on. Sam was sitting on the bed cradling Ellie as she wailed.

“And hungry, apparently,” Dean chuckled. He guided his mate over to the bed and helped him lie down. Cas undid the robe and reached out for his pup. Sam handed her over.

“I can’t believe I’m an uncle. She’s so gorgeous. Feisty too,” Sam said with a laugh.

“I want our own pup,” Gabe murmured as he took Molly from Tess. She whimpered and snuffled, trying to catch his scent but he carried her over to Dean. As soon as he took his daughter he choked up.

“Holy shit, I’m a father.” Dean’s voice cracked, and he wiped his face against his shoulder to clear away the tears.

“No swearing!” Cas chastised.

“Yes, dear,” Dean said with a grin. 

“Oh, Ellie has blue eyes too.” Cas murmured as he caressed his pup’s cheek. She was nursing hungrily, her tiny lips smacking loudly and it made him smile. She was wearing the bee outfit he had chosen and was wrapped in the first of the two blankets he had made. She looked like a tiny angel. When he looked over at his mate he saw him cradling Molly and kissing her forehead as he whispered softly to her. They had chosen the blue sleeper with the clouds for her and she looked like she was swimming in it. Still, she looked precious. Charlie sat down next to Dean and looked down at his pup.

“She’s so perfect, so tiny,” she gushed.

“Isn’t she though? I can’t believe they’re finally here.” He was so amazed that he and Cas had created these two tiny beings. 

“Shall I go handle the masses outside waiting for an update? I believe there are even more now than there were before,” she said.

“Yeah. Don’t give the pups names, but you can give weight and time of birth. I wanted to be sure both girls were healthy before I announced to the world that it was twins,” he told her.

“Sure thing. I’ll be back in a bit.” She kissed his cheek before getting up and leaving.

“I think I’ll go with her. Legal representation and all,” Sam said before following her out.

“Is she still awake?” Gabe asked as he sat down next to Dean and looked down at his niece.

“Surprisingly, yes. She’s really alert.” Dean touched his pup’s cheek and she cooed as she tried to scent him. “How is that I already love her so much?”

“Because you made her. She really is beautiful. They both are.” Gabe smoothed a hand down the pup’s cheek. “She really looks a lot like Cas did as a pup. And like a couple of our sisters too. She’s going to grow up to be gorgeous.”

“Dean, can you take her?” Cas asked when Ellen walked in with a tray loaded with food. He was eyeing it hungrily. Dean handed Molly to Gabe and took a sleeping Ellie to place her in one of the bassinets. Ellen brought the tray over and set it on the nightstand. She chuckled when Cas grabbed one of the sandwiches she had made and scarfed half of it down in one bite.

“Slow down, sugar or you’ll make yourself sick,” she warned him. He nodded but still took another huge bite. 

“Charlie’s outside talking to them people. I was watching it on the news while I was getting the food ready,” Ellen said as she handed Dean a plate with a sandwich. He took it gratefully and started eating.

“I’ll go check on them, see how that’s going,” Gabe said. Molly had finally fallen asleep so he placed her gently into the other bassinet. 

“I’m going to go home. Are you feeling alright?” Tess asked.

“Yes, just hungry and exhausted,” Cas replied.

“Ok. So I went ahead and set up an appointment for tomorrow with Doctor Sanders. She will do the initial exam for the pups and then give the referral for a pediatrician. There are three that I can think of that are like her, respectful and caring of Omegas. I know she’ll recommend one of them. She’ll make sure you’re in good hands,” Tess told them.

“What time tomorrow?” Dean asked.

“I set it up for two, that way you’ll have time to rest. I would have set it up for the day after tomorrow, but I would rather play it safe. He’s going to bleed a lot, and I’m worried about blood clots. So, rest up because these little girls aren’t going to let you get a whole lot of sleep for the next few months,” she said with a soft laugh.

“Thank you for everything, Tess. We are very grateful. We’ll be calling you for assistance with birthing our future pups,” Cas told her.

“It was my pleasure, and I look forward to working with you again in the future. Be well.” She gave a small wave as she headed for the door.

“I’ll see her out,” Ellen told them.

For a few minutes at least, Dean and Cas were alone with their pups.

“We’re parents, babe. Can you believe it?” Dean asked. Cas was busy eating grapes, but he shook his head. 

“No, it’s so surreal,” he said once he had swallowed his food.

“Do you want me to make you some tea?” Dean finished the last of his sandwich and set the empty plate on the tray. Cas shook his head as he popped some grapes in his mouth. Dean wanted a couple of the grapes, but his mate was ravenous and deserved the food way more. He’d just try and grab a snack later. Checking his watch he saw that it was just after five a.m.

“Babe, I’m going to let El and the others know that we’re going to sleep now. If we’re lucky the girls will let us get a couple of hours of rest, but seeing as how Molly didn’t eat very much, I’m sure she’ll be up soon.” Dean stood up once Cas had finished the last of the grapes and took the empty tray with him as he left.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Cas sleeping?” Ellen asked as she came down the hall, meeting him on his way to the kitchen. 

“Not yet, but I bet he’ll be asleep before I get back upstairs,” Dean replied as he put the dirty plates in the sink, along with the tray. He yawned, the exhaustion of the last day and a half finally catching up with him.

“Go on up to bed, darling, and get some sleep. I’m going to clean up some stuff and then I’ll head home. Now, do you need help getting Cas and them babies to the doctor tomorrow?” she asked.

“Nah. Sammy and Gabe are staying for a few days to help out. They’ll help. Aside from the trip to the doctor I don’t think we’ll be up for visitors or going out anywhere for at least the next week or two. We’ll let you know when people can start stopping by.” He went to her and pulled her into a hug. “Thank you, for everything.”

“Of course, sweetheart. You get as much sleep as you can, you’re going to need it.” She kissed his cheek and ran her fingers through his hair, just as she’d done when he was a little boy. “I love you, honey, and I’m so very proud of you. You’re a good man, and a good husband. Cas is lucky to have you, but you’re lucky to have him too. Never forget that.”

“I never could. I didn’t think it was possible to love someone as much as I love him. If there’s one thing he’ll never have to worry about, it’s how much I love him. I’ll take good care of him, little mama. That’s a promise.” He kissed the top of her head.

With another yawn he made his way back up to the bedroom. To his surprise Cas was still awake.

“What are you doing still awake, angel?” he asked as he closed the door and made his way over to the bed.

“Molly was whimpering, but I’m too sore to get up and she’s too far away for me to pull the bassinet over,” Cas replied. Dean went over to Molly’s bassinet and looked down at her. She was whimpering in her sleep, her tiny face scrunching up and her little lips making sucking noises.

“I think she’s reliving her birth. I read about that. She’s asleep though.” He pulled the bassinet around to his side of the bed and then went to pull Ellie’s closer to Cas’ side. She was sleeping peacefully, looking like a perfect angel.

“She ok?” Cas asked.

“Oh yeah, she’s sound asleep.” Dean went back around to his side of the bed and laid down. He looked over at his mate. “Are you comfortable?”

“No, but that’s to be expected.” Cas scooted a little farther down, whimpering as he did so. “Help me pull the blankets over my legs please?”

Dean pulled the covers up over them both and turned off the lights.

“I want to snuggle with you, Dean,” Cas said after a few minutes.

“But baby, you’re too tender.” Dean sat up on one elbow and looked across the bed at his mate.

“I don’t care. I need you closer. If I wasn’t in so damn much pain I’d have done the moving. Can you just scoot over here? Hold me?” Cas asked.

“Of course, sweetheart.” Dean pulled his own pillow closer to his mate and carefully curled himself around his Omega. “Now sleep, my angel,” he whispered softly.

Molly chose that moment to wake up crying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It's a longer one, but yay! The pups are finally here! :)


	34. Exhaustion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trying to establish a routine with newborn twins is not easy. Thankfully Uncle Sam comes to the rescue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for being a day late. Last night my internet provider had an area wide outage and by 4:30 this morning, it still wasn't back. I gave up and went to bed. The story is on my computer and I could only get online with mobile data on my phone, so I was sort of stuck. Then today the electric company decided they were going to change 3 transformers in my area and announced that we'd have no power for 3 hours. 6 hours later, we still had no power. When I did finally get it back, I was busy hiding in my bed trying to get warm. Whoever thought it was a good idea to change out transformers in the WINTER is an absolute moron! 
> 
> But here is the chapter, now that I have the time to post it. I do hope you all enjoy it. :)

Every two hours the girls were waking up. By noon Cas was more exhausted than he had been after giving birth, and he was in tears. Sam came to the rescue after Dean came staggering down to the kitchen in search of coffee. Gabe stopped him and called for Sam.

“Why aren’t you in bed?” Gabe asked.

“They won’t stop crying,” Dean whined.

“I got this,” Sam said, walking in the room.

“How do _you_ have this?” Dean didn’t mean to sneer, but he was too exhausted to sound anything other than skeptical. Sam held up a package of pacifiers.

“I called Ellen. She sent me to the store to buy these.” He held up two recently sterilized pacifiers before leading the way up the stairs and into the bedroom. Cas was trying desperately to calm Molly, and he was crying with her. Sam headed to the bathroom and came back a few minutes later.

“Good thing you still have that tea pot in there, I needed the hot water,” Sam chuckled as he walked back into the room.

“What are you doing?” Cas asked as Sam took the pup from him.

“Giving you a bit of peace,” Sam replied as he popped the pacifier into the pup’s mouth. He nudged the roof of her mouth with it to encourage her to suck and she quickly quieted down. Once she did, he handed her back and went to Ellie who was screaming in her bassinet. He did the same with her, quickly quieting the pup with a second pacifier.

“He’s the pup whisperer.” Dean’s joke was weak, but he was too exhausted to really give a crap. He was so desperate for sleep.

“How about this, Gabe and me, we’ll take the girls for a little bit so you can both sleep. They have both eaten, right?” Sam asked.

“Yeah, but they probably need to be changed.” Cas leaned into Dean as the Alpha crawled back into the bed.

“Everything’s in the nursery, right?” 

Cas nodded, his eyelids already beginning to droop.

“Thanks, man.” Dean’s eyes were closing too. 

Sam scooped Ellie up and met Gabe at the door, handing her to him. By the time he closed the door his brother and brother-in-law were out like a light.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a quick change, Sam switched out the handmade blankets for simple receiving blankets and wrapped each pup up securely. They both settled back down and fell back asleep.

“How did you know to do that?” Gabe asked as he watched his mate lay the pups out in one of the cribs side by side.

“What, the pacifiers?” 

“All of that. You knew about the pacifiers, the blankets, and why aren’t you putting them each in their own cribs?”

Sam picked up one of the baby monitors and turned it on.

“Come on, let’s go watch TV in my old room.” 

Gabe followed him out but left the door open. They headed to Sam’s old room, which still contained all of his old furniture, minus the book shelves. There were no pillows on the bed so they curled up together on the couch and turned on Netflix.

“So, how did you know those things?” he asked again.

“I researched it. I have like zero experience with pups, but I want to make up for that with our nieces. I want to get in there and get my hands dirty, to learn what each cry means and how to ease their fears and discomfort. I watched a million videos these last few months, and asked everyone I knew with pups every question I could possibly think of. My friend Lauren, the one that did the mural? I asked her if I could play with her newborn nephew and get some experience with changing diapers, burping and feeding him with a bottle. I wanted Dean and Cas to know that they could depend on me, that they could trust me with their pups. I figured you had the experience. I didn’t want to be left out of that,” Sam confessed.

“Honey, you’re not being left out. I’m extremely rusty, and my ex pushed me away a lot when I tried to step in and help her. I, unfortunately, had to use my Alpha status just to get the chance to change my kid’s diaper and play with him. So I’m looking forward to interacting with Ellie and Molly just as much as you are,” Gabe said.

“They’re going to be wonderful.” Sam sighed dreamily as he thought of his nieces. They were so precious, so perfect.

“I want pups, Sam. You do too, right?” Gabe asked.

“Yeah, I do. At least one, but I’d like maybe two or three. I’m thinking adoption. There are so many pups out there without homes. Kids in the foster system get tested because some homes won’t take Omegas. I want to adopt those kids,” Sam replied.

“I’m game. Can we do surrogacy too though? At least once?” Gabe looked up at his mate.

“Yeah, I like that idea,” Sam said.

“When do you want to get married? I want that first.” Gabe reached out to take his mate’s hand. Someday soon there would be a ring sitting there. Antiquated tradition or not, he wanted to add on to the link he had already made with Sam, to deepen their bond further.

It had made Gabe the happiest man in the world when Sam had said yes _finally_ to being his mate, though getting the man to actually commit to it had taken more work. He’d remained patient though. Sam had trust issues and if anyone was going to understand that, it was him. Still, it had frustrated him that the Beta had made him wait as long as he had. The night Sam had come to him and told him he was ready was the best day of his life. Sam was finally his, and he was Sam’s. Sam was a good mate too, devoted and caring, just as he had known the man would be. He knew part of his mate’s devotion carried over from the loyalty he’d felt to Dean, and his feelings that his brother’s love and protection deserved to be paid back. Even if Dean hadn’t seen it for what it was, Gabe recognized it. If Gabe made dinner, Sam was quick to sweep in and clean up, loading the dishwasher and making sure everything was put back in its place. He did the laundry and did the grocery shopping so that when Gabe got home from a long day of work, there were no chores to do. He’d assured his mate repeatedly that he didn’t need to prove anything to him, but that had caused their first real fight, so Gabe had immediately backed off. He quickly learned that Sam was the type that always strived to be his very best. It brought the Beta immense peace and a sense of purpose to help, and asking him to back off was asking him to change who he was, and the last thing Gabe wanted was to change the man he had fallen in love with.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The movie had finished and they were almost an hour into a second one when they heard fussing on the monitor. One of the pups was awake and most likely hungry. They put the movie on pause and walked back to the nursery.

“Oh, what’s the matter princess?” Sam cooed to the pup as he lifted her up. He popped her forgotten pacifier back in her mouth, and she immediately began sucking at it.

“Is that Molly or Ellie?” Gabe asked as he walked over to the crib.

“Ellie. She lost her pacifier, but the way she’s sucking at it now, I’d say she’s ready for real food. I’m going to take her to Cas before she wakes Molly.” Sam walked out of the nursery and over to his brother’s room. He knocked once before walking in. Cas and Dean were still sound asleep, the Alpha curled protectively around his Omega. It brought a smile to Sam’s face to see them like that. Ellie’s fussing pulled Cas out of his slumber, and he forced his eyes open.

“She hungry?” He tried to sit up but ended up crying out in pain, which made Dean jolt upright.

“What’s the matter?” he cried.

“I need help, please. Help me sit up some so I can feed her?” Cas asked.

Dean carefully pulled Cas up more as Sam handed over the now screaming pup. It took only a few seconds to latch on, and then she was greedily drinking. Cas purred contentedly, dozing off as he fed his pup.

“What time is it?” Dean asked as he rubbed his eyes.

“Around three? Are you hungry?” Sam asked. Dean thought for a moment before nodding. 

“Ok, Gabe and I will get started on dinner. You guys can get some more sleep, and we’ll let you know when the food is done,” Sam said. Dean nodded in agreement.

“Can you get me some water in the bathroom?”

“Sure.” Sam took the empty glass sitting on the nightstand and carried it into the bathroom. It was a mess in there so after he’d brought Dean his water, he went back and cleaned it up. When he returned to the bedroom Gabe was walking in with a fussy Molly.

“She’s hungry,” he said.

Cas had fallen asleep and so had Ellie, so Sam traded pups with Gabe and woke his brother-in-law up again.

“What?” Cas jerked awake, grimacing at the pain that tore through his belly from the movement.

“Molly’s turn now,” Sam replied. Cas nodded, smacking his lips together as he got the pup to latch on. 

“Here, baby.” Dean offered the glass of water and Cas drank it down. 

“I’ll get you some more,” Sam said, and did just that. When he returned Cas took the glass and swallowed down most of it. Sam set it on the nightstand and waited for Cas to finish with Molly. When he did, he took her back.

“I’ll go make sure they have dry diapers and get dinner started. I told Dean, we’ll let you know as soon as dinner’s ready.”

“Thank you, Sam. You have no idea how much it means to me that you’re doing this for us,” Cas told him.

“We’re a pack. We’re all supposed to help with the pups. Besides, it gives me practice for our own.” Sam nodded towards Gabe who had already put Ellie back to bed and come back to get Molly.

“I can’t wait to help with yours,” Cas told him.

“Get some rest. Your girls are safe,” Gabe said. He and Sam exited quietly, closing the door behind them.

“Dean?” Cas turned to look at his mate who was looking through his phone.

“Yes, honey?”

“I need to pee, badly. It hurts to get up though. Can you help me?” Cas asked. Dean set the phone down and got up, coming around to Cas’ side of the bed and helping him to his feet.

“Probably time to change your pad, too.” Dean said as he helped his mate into the bathroom. Cas stripped off the gown for the time being and let Dean dote on him as he sat down to pee. Dean helped him change the pad, which was indeed soaked with blood, before helping his mate with putting the gown back on. He then helped him back to bed. Cas wasn’t leaning on him as heavily, which he took as a good sign.

“Do you want to go downstairs for dinner later?” Dean asked him.

“I’m not sure yet. I’m starving now though. Can I have a snack? Fruit? Cheese? Anything to tide me over?” 

“I’ll go get you something,” Dean told him. 

“Thank you. And later, I want to brush my teeth. My mouth feels gross.” Cas grimaced as he ran his tongue over them and felt the coat of fur on them.

“Of course. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like the chapter. Comments are always welcome!


	35. Q&A Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean arranges for the question and answer, and to everyone's pleasant surprise, Cas owns it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter to tuck it into the rest of the story, to give an idea of some of the things they're going through as Dean runs for mayor. Rumors and gossip need to be nipped, and society has a lot of questions for the couple. I hope you like it. Enjoy!

“What exactly are we doing?” Cas was standing at the island watching as Dean beat eggs in a bowl for the omelets he was making.

“There’s a great deal of speculating going on about us, and about the girls. We need to nip it. I have officially been endorsed as a mayoral candidate by the current mayor, and I want to run the cleanest campaign possible. Elections are in November, so it’s going to be a hectic year for us. For once there should be a truly honest politician in office. I’m financially well off, so that will quell any rumors of taking bribes, but it leaves us with an entirely new problem. We’ll be accused of paying people off to advance my political career. So I need to get out there, answer questions, better establish my platform. And people are curious about the girls. We need to weigh the benefits and negative effects of announcing to the world that neither of our children are Alphas. We’re going to be pressured for a while to get them tested.”

“We’re not testing them,” Cas said firmly.

“I know, which is why we have to hold our ground. I fully intend to back our decision not to test them on the grounds that the orientation of our children is secondary to their well-being and happiness. We are going to be in the spotlight for a very long time to come. Our every move is going to critiqued, judged, scrutinized down to its very core, and we need to be ready for that. I could…not run, but then who else would push for the changes like we’re doing? It would be like abandoning Omegas everywhere. We’ve lit the flame of hope, and started to create a better, safer world for our children. Do we really want to dash that hope?”

Cas quickly shook his head. “No, absolutely not. I can handle the pressure from the media. I’m stronger than people give me credit for. We need to do this. I want the world to be safe for Omegas. I don’t ever want to worry that our girls are out somewhere and some Alpha thinks he has the right to force one of them into submission. Laws need to change, and they need to be upheld.”

Dean smiled at his mate as he poured the egg batter into a frying pan. “So I contacted Abby. She’s arranging the Q & A for us. We’ll be in front of a live audience, and they’ll be regular people like you and me, not the media, though media will be there as well. We’ll have an interviewer who will select predetermined questions that are going to come directly from the audience. We will be expected to answer honestly, which is what I plan to do anyway. And I know you’ll answer honestly. Abby said that some of the questions we can expect to receive will be ones like, what kind of future do we see for our children if laws do not change as we expect them to, or would we ever allow our girls to be placed in The District.” 

Cas growled and there was a momentary flash of gold in his eyes. Dean could feel his anger.

“And that is the kind of response we need to avoid. We need to approach all questions with an objectiveness that may push beyond our natural responses. Would we ever relegate our kids to The District? Hell no. But we need to put feelings aside and give a mature, neutral response. So instead of saying hell no, we could say something along the lines of: _‘As a parent, I would never willingly push my children away, regardless of their orientation.’_ Ok?”

Cas nodded but it was clear from his pouty expression and his scent that he was not happy. “When is this session supposed to take place?”

“The sooner, the better,” Dean replied.

“Fine. Just let me know when it is.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“How’s Uncle Gabe’s little princess doing?” Gabe reached into the swing and scooped Ellie out, her little legs kicking happily as he kissed her cheek. Her tiny fingers grabbed at his cheeks as she cooed excitedly. “That’s right, Uncle Gabe loves his pretty princess!” the man cooed. The pup gave a wide, gummy smile that melted his heart to see. He turned to look at his brother.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m well, thank you. Bleeding stopped two months ago, and I’ve just been concentrating on exercise and diet to get back in shape,” Cas replied. He was sitting on the couch nursing Molly, who was staring up at him with wide eyes as her little hands grabbed at the finger he dangled in front of her.

“Well, you look good. You can’t even tell that you were pregnant,” Gabe said as he sat down on the couch. He propped Ellie up in his lap and made a silly face at her. She squealed and giggled.

“That’s what I’m hoping for. Dean bought me all new jeans, and the lady that did the fitting said I’m the perfect weight for my height. So at least I’m no longer underweight,” Cas said. Gabe looked over at him, that hint of guilt creeping into his amber eyes once again.

“Yeah, that never should have happened in the first place.”

“Please, don’t apologize any more for our father’s cruelty.” Cas didn’t blame Gabe.

“It’s why the vast majority of our siblings, once they left, they changed their last name. No one wanted to be tracked back to him.” 

“You didn’t though,” Cas pointed out.

“Yeah, I think I’m the only one. And you, but you didn’t have the money to do it.” Gabe chewed on his lip for a moment. “I’m debating taking Sam’s name when we get married.”

Cas’ eyes widened. “No one does that! An Alpha never takes their mate’s name!”

“It’s not against the law, and I certainly feel more like a Winchester than I do a Novak,” Gabe said.

“I think Sam would be honored. It’s unprecedented. You’ll be adding to the flame of hope for Omegas and Betas everywhere.” 

Gabe smiled. He liked the idea of giving hope to Omegas everywhere. “Yeah, I guess it will. But really, I’m doing it because I love Sam, and I hate our parents. No one outside of our pack needs to know that, though.”

“Your secret is safe.” Molly released her papa’s nipple and began babbling happily at him. He lifted her up and rubbed his nose against hers as she giggled and grabbed at anything she could reach.

“She’s getting big. You almost can’t tell anymore that Ellie was so much bigger,” Gabe said, nodding towards Molly.

“Yeah, she’s a little piglet when she eats. They’re on baby food now, too, and she clears off an entire jar _and_ nurses. I’m pumping now so we can add cereal into the milk at night so they sleep longer. They’re sleeping roughly five to six hours at a stretch as long as we put the cereal in.” Cas pretended to eat his pup’s belly and she burst into giggles, her little legs kicking furiously. 

“I can’t wait until Sam and I can take them overnight. I’m dying to spoil them rotten.” Gabe tickled Ellie and she squirmed, more happy giggles spilling from her lips.

“You’ll be hard pressed to get them past Dean. He’s so protective of them. But we would definitely look forward to a night or two alone.” Cas crossed his right leg over his left, resting his ankle on his thigh and set Molly down in his lap, her head resting against his right knee. With both hands free he wiggled his fingers so she could grab at them.

“I’m sure. We…put in an application for adoption. There’s a little boy, six months old. His parents had him tested at birth, and he tested as an Omega, so they put him up for adoption. How on Earth do parents even do that? Anyway, they’re considering us.” Gabe was excited about the prospect of getting to not only be a father again, but getting to be a father with a mate that wouldn’t push him away and refuse to allow him to interact with his pup.

“That’s fantastic news! What about the wedding?” Cas asked.

“Well, we decided to have it in August. We’re thinking of doing it in a traditional way, like how our ancestors used to do it,” Gabe replied.

Cas nodded. “So, in the woods, a natural wedding? Closer to our roots?”

“Exactly. Except we’ve already knocked out the mating part. In ancient times the ceremony that bonded two members of a pack together included mating in front of the entire pack, and claiming. Well, Sam and I are not exhibitionists, and I’ve already claimed him, so this will literally just be a wedding and celebrating.”

“I understand. I would not have wanted Dean to claim me in front of anyone. How did our ancestors even do that without being completely humiliated? And Dean’s a rather private person as it is. I can’t imagine he’d have wanted that either. I’m glad we did things the way that we did.” Cas thought for a moment. “So, August, eh? What about the woods where the Novak pack originated?”

“I’d rather do it where the Winchester pack started,” Gabe replied. Cas smiled.

“I agree. That’s an excellent idea. I will help with anything I can.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“How old are the girls now?” Abby asked as she leaned down to look at the pups, who were sitting in their double stroller, staring up at her with wide, innocent eyes.

“They turned five months yesterday.” Cas replied.

“They’re gorgeous. I can see you both in them.” She smiled, and Ellie smiled back. “Are they sitting up on their own already?” 

“Yes…and no. They sit up for about thirty seconds and then slowly fall over,” Dean said, chuckling.

“That’s to be expected. My son would sit up at that age and lean forward to balance himself. As long as he was left to sit like that, he could stay upright for a long time. Once he tried to sit up straight, he’d fall over again.” She stood up and smiled at them. “I miss him being that little. He’s nineteen now. He’s still my baby, mind you, even if he disagrees.”

“That’s how I feel. Even when they’re seventy with their own great grandkids, they’ll still be my babies.” Dean reached down to run a hand gently across Molly’s cheek. 

“So what exactly is going to happen today? I’m nervous about this,” Cas said. He fiddled with his tie. It felt like it was choking him. Dean stood up and swatted his hand away gently to fix it.

“There’s no reason to be nervous, sweetheart. We’ll be fine.” He kissed his mate’s cheek and Cas relaxed a bit as he leaned into it. He needed his mate’s gentle touch.

“It’s a standard question and answer session. The audience is filled with a random combination of Alphas, Betas and Omegas. You’ll be speaking with your peers.” She looked directly at Cas as she spoke. “As for the media, this will be on every news station, but it’s only live on DNN. We have Ginger Meyer doing the interview. She is sympathetic to your campaign, Dean, and will work hard to make sure neither of you are put on the spot in an uncomfortable way. We’ve made it clear that you reserve the right to refuse to answer any questions.” 

“Alright. And our lawyers are here?” Cas looked around, spotting Chuck talking to someone, and Sam was on the other side of him.

“You ready, babe?” Dean asked his mate.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be ready, but I suppose we should get this over with,” Cas said as he reached down to unbuckle Ellie from her seat. Dean did the same with Molly. 

“This way.” Abby led them out onto the stage and to the chairs that had been placed at the center. Dean had the diaper bag slung over his shoulder. For this they had decided that pumping and bringing bottles with was better than Cas nursing a possible hungry pup in front of America. The girls were fed and content, but putting them in front of an audience and under bright lights, it was unpredictable how they would react. There were murmurs in the crowd as they took their seats. Dean sat Molly on his lap and handed her a plastic toy key chain with big chunky keys on it while Cas placed a teething ring in Ellie’s hands. The murmuring grew slightly louder as a woman in a cream colored linen suit stepped onto the stage. Cas recognized her as Ginger Meyer. He watched her show almost every day. She smiled as she took a seat diagonal to theirs. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hello, and welcome!” She shook hands with them both. “How was the flight?” 

“It wasn’t too bad,” Dean said. Sure, he’d been a nervous wreck but his mate had done his best to soothe him.

“Good! And your hotel accommodations? They’re adequate?” she asked.

The show had arranged for a suite at the Hilton for them. Dean and Cas had their own room and so did the girls. It was actually a very nice arrangement.

“The rooms are lovely, thank you. We are quite comfortable,” Cas replied.

“That’s wonderful! Your girls are absolutely beautiful.” She waved at Ellie, who gave her a gummy smile.

“Thank you,” Cas smiled warmly. 

“Ok, are we ready to start?” she asked. Cas looked over at Dean, who nodded slowly.

“I guess we are,” he said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ginger turned towards the camera in front of the stage. Her expression was pleasant as she addressed the viewers at home watching.

“Hello, and welcome to another edition of Daily Talk with Ginger. As you know, I’m Ginger Meyer and today’s guests are mayoral candidate Dean Winchester and his husband, Castiel Winchester. As most of America knows, Dean and Castiel are not only mates, but true mates.” She paused, letting the audience react. There were more murmurs of acknowledgement. “Dean and Castiel recently became fathers for the first time to twin daughters, Gabriella and Molly.” Soft clapping emanated across the room. Cas smiled and bounced Ellie lightly in his lap. She giggled, which seemed to warm everyone’s heart.

Ginger smoothed her hands down the front of her pants before turning back to face Cas and Dean. From the pocket of her blazer she withdrew a stack of cards. The dreaded questions.

“There is much that the city of Lawrence, the state of Kansas, and America in general is dying to know about you and your family. It is very much appreciated that you took the time from your busy schedules to come down and talk with us today,” she said. Dean smiled and nodded.

“It’s our pleasure to be here today.”

“We have some questions here that come directly from our in-studio audience, but we are also live streaming this, so questions are pouring in via the internet as well. The first question we have comes from Chester Mazula in Lawrence. Chester is an Alpha, a pharmacist and father of six. Chester asks: If you are elected as mayor, what is the first law you plan to change that will benefit Omegas?”

Dean smiled at his mate before turning to look at the camera. “Truthfully, Ginger, our government system is flawed in that Omegas are no longer seen as even being human. They have become property, a thing to be owned and controlled, and that is absolutely _not_ what an Omega is. They are vital to our society. Without them the human race would perish, so why is it that we can’t treat them with the respect they deserve? My first act as mayor would be to restore order in The District. To establish not only a working police force but to eliminate the need for Omegas living there to have to rely on illegal means such as prostitution just to put food on the table for their children. We’re establishing workshops and teaching Omegas the skills necessary to take on jobs that will provide them the money necessary to take care of themselves and their families, without having to rely on anyone in order to survive. My first mission as mayor would be to make The District a place that Omegas do not have to fear living in. I will make it self-sustaining and a positive addition to the rest of the city. See, before I started revitalizing The District, it was a blight on the city. It had the highest crime rate of any other district in the entire city. Since I began remodeling and bringing businesses into the area, the crime has dropped exponentially. It is now lower than any other area. I want to keep this momentum going. I intend to make The District safe for anyone, Omega or otherwise, to do business there. It will help to stimulate the economy for the entire state.”

Cas reached over to squeeze his mate’s hand. Dean smiled at him.

“Second question comes from Gayle Skimorski of Lawrence. Gayle is a Beta, teacher and mother of two. She asks: What is your view on segregated schools, and do you plan to change the way students are currently educated?” Ginger asked.

“Absolutely, I plan to change that. Right now, once a pup presents as an Omega, they are separated from society as a whole. Alphas are taught that Omegas are not equal and that they don’t have to control themselves around Omegas. This is not right. This kind of thinking won’t be stopped overnight though. It has to be approached in stages. First, educating the youth and teaching them that Alphas are _not_ superior to Betas or Omegas, and from there they need to be taught how to interact with them in a beneficial way that will improve society and move the next generation towards equal rights and full integration. I am referring to beyond just the school systems. I want to eliminate places like The District. Omegas should not have to cringe and fear out-of-control Alphas. I lived for thirty six years before I met my mate and never once did I ever try to force myself onto an Omega or Beta. I was taught respect, and I was taught that all genders are equal. Even when I met my mate I was respectful. I did not force myself on him at all. I called upon him in his home, and I left the decision up to him as to whether he wanted to come back to my home with me. He decided to come home with me. I wanted to claim him, but I left that decision up to him as well. Had he never chosen to mate with me, I would have never forced myself upon him. I know many Alphas that think the same way that I do, and they wouldn’t dream of forcing themselves upon another person. It is society as a whole that is teaching young Alphas that they have permission to treat Omegas so cruelly. We need to change that mindset if we want to make this country a better place for everyone.”

Applause erupted in the studio. Even the cameraman was clapping. Molly started at the sound and looked out at the crowd with wide, blue eyes. Dean held her closer and she buried her face in his neck, seeking comfort from his scent. Ellie didn’t seem fazed one way or the other and continued to chew on her toy.

“Ok, the next question comes from Margaret Beckman, an Omega from Lawrence. She lives in The District with her two children and works in the Sweet Delights Bakery, which, if I remember correctly is owned by your brother, Gabriel, is that not right?” Ginger asked Cas. He nodded.

“Yes, that is correct. I know Margaret and her family personally.” 

“Margaret asks: Do you plan to learn the gender of your daughters, and how would you feel if they were both Omegas?” Ginger was looking at Dean, expecting the answer from him but Cas held up a hand to silence his mate. Dean just smiled and sat back to wait.

“I’ll take this one,” Cas said. There were a few gasps from people who were surprised to see an Omega silence their mate like that, but then all eyes were riveted on him expectantly.

“We do _not_ intend to learn the orientation of our children. Not Gabriella, not Molly, not any others we might have in the future. Even if all of our children presented as Omegas, they will be loved and raised with the understanding that they are important and equal to everyone else.”

Ginger smiled warmly. “Would you ever consider sending your children to The District if they were Omegas?” she asked.

“I feel that I need to answer this in multiple ways. First, The District in which I spent most of my life, I would not send my worst enemy there. This is a big part of why Dean and I are working to change it. We don’t want anyone to suffer the way Omegas did for so long. When I lived there, there was starvation, freezing in the winter from failed heat because landlords did not care, inflated rents that forced many Omegas to the streets in order to make money just to survive. The streets were cruel. I lost many friends who were simply trying to survive because the Alphas that came into The District felt that it was perfectly alright to beat and kill the Omegas. I was one of the few lucky ones. I lived for a time with a family member after I was evicted from my father’s house, and that afforded me the opportunity to attend one of the few Omega colleges that exist here in the Midwest. I studied hard, I worked long hours to pay for my courses after the relative I was living with died and I was forced to live in The District, because I knew that without a proper education I too would have been forced into the streets in order to afford rent and food. I lived without any luxuries at all. I owned one towel and one blanket. I can’t begin to express how miserable I was in the winter when the temperatures would drop. The heat in my apartment never rose above sixty. I was lucky to eat one frozen dinner a day. I was emaciated, exhausted, and stalked repeatedly by Alphas that felt they had the right to try and force me into submission. My furniture came from dumpsters and things left out on the curb. I hadn’t bought new clothes in probably ten years by the time Dean found me, and the only reason I was not raped or claimed by one of the degenerate Alpha pimps that were always there in The District was because when my relative died, I inherited her car. For twenty years I would go without meals just to make sure my car had gas and was taken care of, because the simple act of walking through my neighborhood could have gotten me killed. I met my mate because I was forced to take on a second job. No one would hire me because I was an Omega. Until I met one lady that was willing to take a chance on me. It turns out she was my mate’s aunt. That is how he and I met. Had I not met him though, I’d have continued to work for her as well as to teach, because I needed the money just to survive. _That_ is what The District was like before Dean and I began to reform it. That is the kind of place that I would never allow my children to exist in. That being said, we are blessed to be in a position where we do not have to even consider sending our children there. But, with the changes we’re making, and the way we’re trying to improve society as a whole, we hope that one day our children will only hear about places like The District in history books.”

The audience erupted in applause, much louder than before. Ellie trembled, her lower lip quivering before she burst into tears. Cas lifted her up, snuggling her close as he covered her ears to reduce the noise. He found her pacifier and popped it in her mouth. When he looked over at Dean, he saw his mate grinning at him.

“That was perfect, babe,” Dean said just loud enough for him to hear. Cas smiled proudly. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The questions kept coming, from the audience, from people watching online. Some were aimed specifically at Dean, others at Cas. In all they answered probably thirty questions. A quick break where they sent the girls backstage with Alan and a temporary nanny had Abby giving them both a thumbs up. They drank water and used the bathroom before returning to the stage. 

The second half had them taking questions live from the audience. Dean was surprised at how many questions were actually directed at his mate, but he was pleased to see Cas rise to the challenge and answer every single one of them, even the less polite ones lobbed his way from angry Alphas. Cas answered each and every one of them with diplomacy, and Dean was pretty sure that if he ever decided to run for a higher office, people everywhere would be in love with his mate. Usually Omega mates were frowned upon and torn apart by the media when someone ran for any political office, but he seriously doubted that would ever happen to Cas. For the first time he was really starting to see what a difference they could make on a much grander scale. Beyond just running for governor. Senator was looking like a viable possibility. And what if he went further? What else could he achieve?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cas rocked this chapter, I think. He's an absolutely amazing Omega. I hope you liked the chapter. Leave me a comment, let me know what you thought. :)


	36. Wedding Jitters and Sick Pups

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam is a bundle of raw nerves in the days leading up to his wedding, and neither Cas nor Gabe can soothe him. His brother takes him out for lunch one afternoon and finds the right words to help his brother relax.
> 
> The morning of the wedding the Winchester house errupts in chaos. The twins are running feveres, there's vomit and diarrhea, and Dean learns the hard way that he does _not_ have a strong stomach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mention a form of sign language here that Cas is teaching the twins. For those unfamiliar, this is a real thing. I learned about it back when my older daughter was just a baby, and I taught her a few things. She was able to communicate to me before she could verbalize when she wanted a bottle, when she was hungry, when she tired, and a few others things. I started with her when she was around six months old. I didn't have to do that with my younger daughter because she actually started talking at 4 months old. That's right, you read that correctly. 4 months old. By six months she could identify everyone in the family CORRECTLY (I was mama, not dada like most babies like to say because the "D" sound is easier. Right off the bat she called me mama, and it was her first word. She would see me walk in the room and go "ma ma ma ma ma ma", and then if her dad walked in, she'd immediately switch to "da da da da da da". By nine months she had two and three word sentences and by twelve months she could hold a full conversation with you, sing the alphabet IN KEY, and knew colors, shapes, and numbers. It was with each of my girls that I learned that different children, they learn differently. My older daughter was by no means slower. Nor was my younger one a genius. They just learned differently, and they still do. That is why Cas says Molly picked up on the sign language right away but it took Ellie a bit longer. The girls will learn at different paces. That's just how kids are. For those interested in learning more about infant sign language, here is a simple video for the basics. These are the same signs I taught to my daughter, and she did pick up on them pretty quickly.
> 
> https://youtu.be/MivLxcxJ-V4
> 
> I do hope you enjoy this chapter. :)

Dean was pleased to see that his ratings were only continuing to rise after the question and answer session with Ginger. Abby arranged for a few more interviews, something he hated but realized were a necessity. She suggested a tour of the house on camera, so people could see for themselves that it wasn’t all a front, that Cas really did share a bed and a life with Dean. Cas, reluctant at first, was eager to not only show off his home, but he took the time to pull his bag from the back of the closet and show America the meager things he had owned before meeting Dean. He had kept them, he said, to show his children down the line where it was that he had come from, so they could truly see the difference their father made for Omegas everywhere. To everyone’s surprise Cas still drove the same car he’d owned when he first met Dean, and it wasn’t because Dean didn’t offer him newer and better things, it was because the car held deep sentimental value to him. It was a part of who he was. Dean just made sure that it always ran like new.

The girls were continuing to grow, and everyone absolutely loved them. Sam and Gabe got the house three blocks away and were able to stretch out more. They took the girls at least once a week to give Dean and Cas a break. The wedding had been backed up to September, and Cas was helping Sam and Gabe both with all of the planning. Charlie got in on the act as well as Ellen and Jo, and the date was set for September 24th. Permission had been granted to have the wedding in the Arbington Forest, where the first of Winchester pack had ruled. Distant relatives still roamed free there, but for those that stayed in the forests, it was a completely different kind of life. There, Omegas were equals still with Alphas and shown absolute respect, but they were still wild. And they were not as human as those that lived in cities. It was as though the species had divided the day the wolves first walked out of the forest. Those that remained in the forest continued with the old ways, retaining most of their feral nature, while those that left slowly began to lose touch with that side of their nature. Occasionally the two still crossed paths, and there was a solid agreement between the two that the forests were not to be touched or destroyed. It had been a long time since a marriage or union had taken place inside one, but Gabe and Sam were determined to get back in touch with their roots. To a point.

In the days leading up to the wedding, Sam was a mess. He was alternating between being extremely nervous and extremely excited, and it was clear he was stressed out. Cas did what he could to ease his brother-in-law’s concerns, and Gabe did what he could as well. In the end it was Dean stepping in that finally calmed Sam down.

“It’s your wedding, not the end of the world. Where people sit, what’s on the menu, whether the ancient ones decide to make an appearance, it’s not important. You’re marrying the love of your life. You’re going to stand there in front of the minister, take Gabe’s hand, and profess your eternal love to him. That’s what matters. You have enough people working on the catering and decorations, your invitations were sent out, the cake is being made, and your mate is happier than I’ve ever seen him before. So chill!”

They’d been enjoying a lunch downtown together, no mates, just brother to brother, and Dean had sat for a good half hour listening to his brother going on and on about all of his worries regarding the wedding before he finally had had enough. Sam looked at him sheepishly after his brother’s words.

“You’re right. It’s just…I want it to be perfect. I only ever want one wedding. I only ever wanted one mate, and that didn’t happen, but I don’t want anyone but Gabe now, and I want the wedding to be perfect. I just…I love him so much. It’s as much for him as it is for me.”

“It’ll be perfect because it’s for the two of you. It’s not all of the crap going on in the background that makes the wedding perfect. No one will remember twenty years from now whether they ate steak or fish at your wedding reception. What they will remember is that you promised your life to Gabe, and he promised his to you. With me and Cas? He just told me what he wanted, I made it happen, and yes, there were problems, but we took it in stride. The first caterers we hired, they went bankrupt due to lawsuits for food poisoning, so we were forced last minute to hire a new one. The flowers were wrong, the first cake burned, and there was some other stuff. But we just sort of sucked it up and kept going. In the end, it was just that I was marrying the man I love, and that’s what I really remember, the vows and promising to love him for the rest of my life.” Dean tipped his beer in his brother’s direction.

“You’ve got a good man. He loves you more than anything in the world. If I was a religious man, I’d say you were blessed. I’m glad you opened yourself up and allowed him to get close. You both needed that. You both deserve to be happy, and I know he makes you happy. The fact that you’re considering having a family of your own, and that you bought a house, that speaks volumes for how much you love him. So just relax, take it easy, and enjoy this. It’s your day, little brother.”

Sam nodded and felt all the tension he’d been carrying for weeks now beginning to melt away.

“You’re right. So far everything is pretty much in order. I guess I’m just nervous.”

“For what? You did the hard part already, you mated the guy. And you aren’t going _that_ traditional with the wedding. Be glad you’re not getting butt naked in front of two hundred of your closest friends and family so your partner can hump you and claim you while we all watch. If you were, I’d say stress out all you want,” Dean chuckled. A small smile rose up on Sam’s face and he took a sip of his own beer.

“You’re right. I don’t know how our ancestors thought it was perfectly alright to mate in front of the entire pack.”

“It’s the same people that believed clothing was optional until winter, and then they wore skins of the animals they hunted. Modesty was not a strong suit,” Dean said.

“Thank you, for this. Gabe’s been trying to get me to relax for weeks now. I think I’m getting on his last nerve. Even Cas has been trying. I know I’m frustrating the poor guy. I’m better now though. Everything is pretty much taken care of. Charlie is handling the guest list, Ellen and Jo are handling the caterers, Cas is helping with the decorations and the cake. I think all that’s really left is the last suit fitting.” Sam poked at the last bite of his sandwich. He didn’t often eat corned beef and this one was really good; however, he was stuffed.

“Those aren’t suits, Sammy,” Dean said with a small smile. 

“I know. Robes? Would they be called robes? They’re the traditional colors of our pack, red, gold, and black as well as the colors of Gabe’s, purple, white, and yellow,” Sam asked.

“Yes, robes would be a better term. And they should fit just fine.”

“I…needed to have mine lengthened,” Sam admitted. Dean grinned.

“Of course you did, Sasquatch.”

“I’ve done some reading up on traditions. Traditionally, I’m supposed to enter Gabe’s pack at which point he is to strip off my outer robes and dress me in those of his pack, but since we’re doing this backwards, I’m supposed to strip him of his and put our robes on him. In the old days that would be the break where he mated me, and once we were able to pull apart, I would be dressed in the new robe. Since we’re skipping that part I figured we’d exchange vows, I would remove his outer robe, and because I’m not letting everyone see my mate’s bits he’ll have a linen shirt and pants on underneath, and then I would drape the robes of our pack around him. Do you think people will think we’re weird for him taking my name and choosing our pack?” Sam still worried about that.

“I think it doesn’t matter what other people think. His old pack chose to turn their backs completely on the old ways. Our pack tried that too, but I refused to. Some traditions are worth upholding. Like treating your mate with kindness and respect. There’s no way I’d have wanted to mate into the Novak pack, had Cas and my roles been reversed. He was quite happy to enter ours though, because we treat people the way they deserve to be treated. Those that truly matter, they know why Gabe has chosen to enter our pack rather than take you into his. The rest…” Dean shrugged. “Who gives a fuck?”

Sam huffed out a small laugh. “You know, you’re absolutely right.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Dean got home that afternoon he found his mate in the nursery with the girls. At Cas’ insistence they had converted one of the other bedrooms into a playroom for the girls, complete with padded floors and mats for them to nap on, should they fall asleep while playing. When he walked in the room Ellie was chewing on a soft rattle while Molly was smacking around a stuffed puppy. Cas was sitting in his rocking chair reading a book. He looked up and smiled when he saw Dean.

“Hi, sweetheart,” Cas said warmly.

“Hey, gorgeous.” Dean leaned down to kiss him before he knelt down on the floor. He took his shoes off and set them up on top of the shelves so the girls couldn’t reach them. Ellie squealed at the sight of him and began crawling over.

“She’s getting really good at that,” he said proudly. When she reached him, he scooped her up and laid a wet kiss on her cheek.

“They’re crawling all the time now. Really giving me a run for my money,” Cas said with a smile.

“They’ll be walking soon, and then we’ll really be in trouble.” Dean’s words were muffled as Ellie grabbed at his lips. He nibbled on her fingertips until she burst into giggles.

“They’re growing up too fast,” Cas sighed. Molly abandoned her puppy and crawled over to him. As he and Dean watched, she grabbed onto his pants and pulled herself up until she was standing.

“Uh oh.” Dean chuckled as he took in his mate’s look of shock.

“This is the first time she’s done this!” Cas gasped. Molly smiled up at him, and he reached down to ruffle her hair.

“Papa’s little princess,” he cooed. 

“Da da!” she cried happily. She smacked her lips, and he knew she was asking for food.

“Do you want milk?” He held up a hand and motioned like he was milking a cow. She looked at his hand before pressing her own palm to her open mouth.

“She wants food, not milk. I’m going to take her downstairs for a snack.” He scooped her up and got to his feet.

“What was that?” Dean had witnessed the exchange between his husband and daughter with awe.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you. Charlie sent me a couple of videos and I followed some links for them that talked about teaching babies how to communicate before they could talk. So…I’ve been working with the girls to teach them some simple sign language. Mostly I just want to know when they have a dirty diaper or they’re hungry,” Cas explained.

“And they can both tell you?” Dean asked.

“Yes, though Molly was much quicker to pick it up. Ellie has a bit of a stubborn streak,” Cas replied. Dean looked back at Ellie, who was using his knee to give herself the leverage she needed to stand up. Then she was smacking her open mouth too.

“You hungry, angel? Did Papa teach you how to tell us when you’re hungry? That’s a good papa you have.” He cooed as he scooped her up and stood up. When he looked at his mate, Cas was smiling warmly at him.

“What?” he asked.

Cas just shrugged. The smile remained on his face the whole way down to the kitchen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The girls were put in their high chairs and Dean spread some plain Cheerios on their trays while he whipped up some lunch for all of them. Cas let the dogs out, stepping out on the back deck to toss the ball around for a couple of minutes with them. When he came back in he washed his hands and joined his family at the table.

They fed the girls bits of their own food. It was a slow process since they only had four teeth each, but soon enough they were refusing anything more. They were rubbing at their eyes, so Dean took them both upstairs for their naps. When he returned he found Cas sitting at the kitchen table with the laptop Dean had bought for him. He was on Skype, talking to Victor’s son Robby. They were discussing iambic pentameter and how it related to Shakespeare’s writing. Robby had thought he was free and clear of Shakespeare after the help he’d already received from Cas in freshman English, but now in his sophomore year, he found himself confronted once again with the dead writer’s works. 

“Robby asked for help, his teacher is doing a unit on Shakespeare before they begin on poetry,” Cas explained as Dean headed for the fridge.

“You’ll never escape old Bill,” Dean called out loud enough for the boy to hear. Robby laughed.

“So I’m learning!”

Dean grabbed a glass of juice and leaned back against the island to listen as his mate talked about the beauty of the written word, and the magic Shakespeare was able to create with his stories. There was so much passion in Cas’ voice, and he loved to hear it. Their children would learn more from their father than they would in any kind of school setting. He was proud of that. There was no doubt in his mind that the girls would be reading and writing long before they reached kindergarten. A change in Cas’ voice drew his attention back to the present.

“So do you think you understand now? I think you’ll do well on your next exam. If you need further help, please don’t be afraid to ask.”

“Thank you again, Mr. Winchester. I’m pretty sure I get it now. I’m so glad you were able to explain it to me. My teacher just barreled right through it, and I wasn’t catching on fast enough to keep up. I can’t afford to fail English,” Robby said.

“It’s my pleasure to help. Tell your parents that Dean and I say hello. You have a wonderful evening, Robby.” Cas smiled at the boy.

“You too.”

The Skype call ended and Cas shut the computer down. He was surprised to see Dean still there, watching.

“I thought you’d gone to your office, or upstairs,” he said as he got to his feet.

“No, I was listening to you and thinking. You’re amazing with Robby. Victor says that since you started tutoring him last year his grades went from D’s and C’s to A’s and B’s. He thinks Robby has a learning disability, but the school won’t acknowledge it. He suspects the boy has a mild form of dyslexia. He spends so much time trying to read the material that he misses a lot of what the teacher is saying,” Dean said.

“I’ve noticed on a few of his papers that some of his letters are backwards. He attends an Omega school, and they just don’t have the time to stop and concentrate when the children have disabilities. It’s that way at the school I teach at as well. I try to help where I can, but sometimes it’s overwhelming, both for the student and for the teacher,” Cas sighed deeply. “I want to help them all, but the funding is nonexistent. At the Omega school here we’re teaching with extremely outdated materials. Until two years ago we were teaching with history books that still called Russia the USSR.” 

Dean’s jaw dropped. “Seriously?!”

“Yes. I would print materials out at the library and give them to my students just so they had current materials. To supplement the things I had available to me.”

Dean shook his head. “Well, until we can fully integrate all orientations and have them attend a single school, we’ll get the current Omega school up to speed.” He’d promised his mate this already, but with everything he’d been trying to do thus far, it had slipped his mind. He didn’t realize it was quite that bad though. Cas walked over and hugged him.

“Thank you. I know things will get better because you genuinely care. I look forward to going back to work knowing the materials we’ll need will actually be there.”

“I’ll call the principal and the board of education tomorrow and get the ball rolling,” Dean promised.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The morning of the wedding was pure chaos. Ellie threw up just before Cas went to put her dress on, and he was glad he didn’t have her dressed already. She needed a bath and just as he was finishing up with her, he heard Dean shouting. He hurried into the nursery to find Dean gagging.

“What’s the matter?” He hurried over to find his mate trying to contain Molly’s diarrhea.

“S-she’s sick. Oh God…” Dean was fighting not to throw up.

“Switch with me.” Cas held out Ellie and Dean quickly grabbed her. He stepped up and scooped Molly and her soiled diaper into his arms and rushed her to the bathroom. He was extremely glad there was a bathroom attached to the nursery. 

Molly started to poop again so Cas ended up holding her up on the toilet so he didn’t have any more of a mess to clean up. When he was sure she was emptied out, he started a bath and got her cleaned up. Just as he was drying her with a towel, Dean walked in. He frowned at the filthy diaper sitting on the floor before meeting his mate’s eyes.

“Still feeling sick?” Cas asked him.

“I’m sorry about that, I just…poop…”

Cas chuckled as his mate grimaced. His Alpha looked a little green around the gills.

“I get it. She feels better now. If you can get her dressed, I’ll clean the diaper and get everything they soiled into the wash.” 

Dean nodded and took Molly, still wrapped in her towel. He carried her into the bedroom while Cas picked up the diaper and the sleeper Molly had had hanging off her when Dean had first tried to change her. When he walked into the bedroom Dean had Molly, dressed in her little purple dress, in his arms. She was sound asleep, her little cheek smooshed against his shoulder. Her little cheeks were rosy, more so than usual, and that worried Cas. He went to the laundry room and after cleaning the diaper as well as he could, he got a load going. After stripping both cribs and tossing all of the bedding in the wash too, he went back to the bathroom to wash his hands. Dean was sitting in the rocking chair with Molly still asleep on his shoulder when he returned, and he went over to check on the pup.

“Dean, she has a fever.”

Dean brought a hand up to touch the pup’s forehead. “Shit.”

“Dean! Language!” Cas chastised softly. 

“Right, sorry.” Dean was trying not to swear around the pups. He moved Molly down until he was cradling her in his arms and watched as Cas went back to the bathroom to get the thermometer. Cas put it in Molly’s ear and a few seconds later it beeped. She barely stirred, and he was glad she didn’t wake up.

“Oh…Dean…she’s at a hundred point two. I’m going to check Ellie and get the liquid Tylenol. This is not a good day for the pups to be sick.”

“It’s alright. We have a temporary nanny coming with us, but we’ll have to pack extra for the girls. Extra diapers, the Tylenol, extra blankets…” Dean was trying to think of what else they would need.

“I’m going to call Ellen, ask her to come and help,” Cas said.

“Yeah, ok.” 

Cas left the room and came back a few minutes later.

“She’s on her way. She is already dressed. I checked and the nanny is on her way too. I’m going to start laying things out and let Ellen tell us whether we need them or not.”

Molly was fussing after Cas woke her up to give her the Tylenol. He had checked Ellie, and she was running a slight fever too but she wasn’t fussing. Yet. He gave her some Tylenol too and left her with a bottle in her crib while he pulled out the already packed diaper bag and went through everything in it. He looked over once or twice at Dean who was rocking Molly as he tried to coax her into falling back asleep. He had her pacifier and she was sucking away at it, though she was whimpering. 

“I am going to grab more diapers, and perhaps we should bring some of the disposable ones that we keep for times like this. The cloth like ones we bought? It might be easier on the nanny.”

“Yes, and bring some receiving blankets and a couple of wash clothes in case Ellie throws up again,” Dean added. 

 

It was twenty minutes later when security was letting Ellen and Jo into the house. They headed straight up to the nursery.

“What’s the matter with my precious girls?” Ellen asked as soon as she walked in the room.

“They have some kind of virus, and they’re running fevers. Molly has diarrhea and Ellie was throwing up earlier,” Cas told her. 

“You gave them Tylenol already?” she asked as she touched Ellie’s forehead. The baby’s temp had dropped back to normal, and she’d fallen asleep.

“Sure did, right after I called you. Both of their temps are down now,” he replied.

She grabbed the larger diaper bag and loaded it with all of the extras the nanny might need while he and Dean got the sleeping pups into their car seats. Dean went to grab the robes they’d be wearing while Cas and Jo carried the girls down to the car. 

“We have everything we need?” Cas asked as he slipped into the passenger seat.

“Yes. I wasn’t sure if you had everything that you would need, so I grabbed another set of pads, in case you leak.” Dean nodded towards his mate’s chest. The fact that Cas had to wear a bra was a touchy subject for his Omega so Dean treaded lightly on that subject. “And I grabbed us the outfits we said we were going to change into after the wedding.”

Cas crossed his arms over his chest self-consciously. He had fought to get down to his pre-baby weight, but his milk heavy breasts bothered him a lot. Dean found them sexy, but he learned quickly that his mate did not. After being growled at more than a few times during foreplay, and even getting bitten once because he wouldn’t stop messing with them, he had learned his lesson. 

“Alright. If we hurry, we’ll get there with plenty of time to get the girls settled in the cabin with the nanny.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're getting to Sam and Gabe's wedding. It will be covered by several chapters after this one. Patience! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	37. Robes and Ceremonies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Cas arrive at the forest. Cas helps the nanny get the pups settled in the cabin while Dean goes to help Sam. Gabe asks for Cas to come. He someone for Cas to meet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so this chapter, and perhaps the next few will be unbeta'd, for now. Later they will be edited and a beta'd version will go up, but right now my beta is going throug some things, and this is the last thing she needs on her plate at the moment. I still hope you like it. :)

It was a two hour drive from their house to the forest where Dean’s family had started, and Cas spent most of the ride dealing with one cranky pup or the other. The nanny showed up just as they were leaving and was now riding in the back with Cas and the pups. She was trying to help him with soothing them. Dean was worried that his mate would be worn out before they ever reached the forest. 

When they arrived Cas went with Sharon, the nanny to the cabin designated for their party. She was to stay there with Ellie and Molly, and other nannies would be there with other pups. Cas wanted her to keep the girls upstairs in one of the bedrooms so they wouldn’t get anyone else sick. She was in full agreement, and they got the girls settled in their portable pack and play in a far bedroom where it would be quiet.

“Are you sure you’ll be able to handle them?” He asked worriedly. The girls were asleep, sucking away on their pacifiers as they dreamed.

“They’ll be fine. I’ve taken care of children with much worse than just a simple virus. For the most part, they’ll sleep. If I have any problems at all I will text you or your husband.” Her scent was calm and it helped to ease most of his concern. If she felt that she could handle it then he would trust her to do exactly that.

“Ok. I will keep my phone on vibrate in case you do need to reach me.” 

She smiled and nodded. “Enjoy the wedding. Congratulations to your brother and brother in law.”

“Thank you.” He looked one last time at his sleeping pups before leaving. When he went back outside Alan was waiting for him.

“Where’s Dean?” 

“He is speaking with his brother. Sam is…nervous.” Alan said with a chuckle. Cas smiled.

“Ah, he’s probably expecting something will go wrong. He has worried about that a lot.” 

“They’re in that tent there, but your brother is in that one. And he said he needed to speak with you. Apparently you have more family here?” Alan pointed out each tent. Cas’ heart began to race. More family? Had Michael come? Or Luke? 

“Thank you, I will go and talk to him now.” Cas smiled politely before running across the open field to the tent his brother was in. When he reached it he slowed to a stop and took a deep breath before pulling the door flap back.

“Gabe?” He asked as he stepped inside. Gabe looked up from where he stood in front of a full length mirror. There was a man standing next to him that turned to look as well.

“Cassie! Come here!” Gabe motioned for him to come closer. As he did he realized the scent from the other man was familiar as well. He looked up at the man, another Alpha, and saw familiar eyes looking back at him.

“Michael?” He asked. It had been so long… The man smiled and pulled him into a hug.

“Castiel! I never thought I’d get to see you again! Gabe has been filling me in some about your life, and what he hasn’t filled in, I have been following in the news. I am so sorry you ended up in The District. You were just a pup when I left. I thought you too would be an Alpha. I had no idea what father had done until I spoke to Gabe, after he had reconnected with you.” His brother scented him, huffing out a laugh as he stood back, holding Cas out at arm’s length.

“You smell of your Alpha, and your pups. They…do not smell well. Is it a virus?” 

Cas nodded. “Yes, they both woke up sick this morning. They’re with a nanny at the moment.” He took a moment to really study his brother’s face. “I…look like you. You look like mother as well.” His brother smiled.

“Yes, we do look like her. We have more family here. Bartholomew is here with his mate, and Luke is coming, though he is no longer with his mate. I spoke with Rachel’s mate, and he agreed to let her come too. So they’re here. Samandriel is here too, though his mate did not come with.” 

Cas was excited. This was the first time he would get to see any of his siblings in more than twenty years, save for Samandriel and Rachel. They were still at home when he was thrown from the house. Rachel and Samandriel were Betas, from what Gabe had told him. He felt a mixture of excitement and fear. There was no telling what kind of Alphas Luke and Bartholomew were. He wanted his mate with him before he came face to face with them. Both Gabe and Michael could smell the fear on him.

“Why don’t you introduce me to your mate? I want to shake hands with the man that is making a difference for Omegas and Betas everywhere.” Michael dropped his hands and smiled at his brother. Cas returned the smile.

“Alright. He’s this way.” 

Cas led Michael out of the tent and over to the one Sam was getting ready in. He could hear voices inside and quickly recognized Ellen’s, Bobby’s, and Jo’s. His own mate’s laughter rung out clearly. He opened the tent and stuck his head in.

“Dean?”

His mate looked up, smiling when he saw Cas in the doorway.

“Come on in, babe. Sam’s decent.”

Cas stepped into the tent. “I want you to meet my brother Michael.” He motioned for Michael to come in. Dean walked over and took the hand the other Alpha offered him. There was that familiar scent that identified them as Novaks.

“Hello, Michael, it’s nice to meet you.” Dean said. Michael smiled and nodded.

“It’s very nice to meet you as well. Gabriel has told me a lot about you, and I wanted to say that I admire everything you are doing to improve life in The District, and to improve life in general for Omegas and Betas everywhere. You are truly a blessing. The mayor in our city is following your campaign closely and has been incorporating some changes to better things for Omegas. You may not realize just how far your influence has reached, but you’re having a very positive effect everywhere.”

Dean grinned and looked at his mate. Cas was practically beaming. He looked back at Michael again.

“You wouldn’t believe the condition Cas was in when we met. The things he experienced, the things his friends experienced, there was no way I could idly stand by and let those kinds of things continue. I promised Cas that if he took me as his mate I would do everything in my power to make things better for Omegas in our city and as far as my influence could reach. I wasn’t going to take him out of hell and leave the people he cared about there to suffer and die miserably.”

“ _If_ he took you as his mate? I thought you were true mates.” Michael looked confused at the two of them.

“Dean is my true mate, but he believes that mating is a choice, not a right. He left the decision up to me. I chose to take him as my mate because he was the first person I ever met that treated me with the respect that I now know I deserve, and he showed me that he loved me without forcing anything on me. He made me feel safe and wanted for the first time in two decades. And…I fell in love with him. It was beyond mating, beyond our compatibility for breeding. We didn’t mate for almost a month after I came to live with him and Sam. He left it up to me whether I would ever mate with him at all.” Cas explained. His brother seemed surprised that Cas was the one to speak up, but he didn’t comment on it. Instead he nodded and patted his brother on the shoulder.

“You two, you’re definitely changing things. You’ve thrown a pebble into the pond and it’s causing ripples. If I was in your city, you’d have my vote, that’s for sure.” 

“Are you in Kansas?” Cas asked.

“I am not. I needed to get away from father. My mate and I live in Houston.” Michael replied. Cas looked at his mate for a moment before turning back to his brother.

“Then perhaps we can count on your vote at a later time when he puts in his bid for the presidency.”

Michael’s eyes widened and he looked over at Dean who was trying keep his own scent and expression neutral.

“You intend to run for president?”

“It’s…something I am considering, yes. We have a plan.” Dean replied.

“Well. I am most certainly impressed.” Michael said. Cas believed him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sam had been busy dressing in his robes but when he came out from behind a partition meant for dressing, he was introduced to Michael. Dean gave Cas his robes to go and put on, and Michael went to find his seat. Dean turned his attention back to his brother who was fussing as Ellen tried to adjust the rope that was cinching his robes shut.

“Stop, it’s too tight!” He complained.

“You’re wearing double the robes and it keeps coming undone. Don’t talk back to me, boy!” She warned. He huffed in annoyance but didn’t argue any more. Dean helped adjust the robes so that the colors were being properly displayed.

“We’re being watched. Our extended family will be behind the tree line watching. Elder Mordecai is already confused by the change in traditions. It’s a miracle we got them to agree to this at all.” He said as he adjusted the robes. Tradition was still somewhat being followed in that Sam was supposed to turn to Gabe, undo the rope tying the Alpha’s robe on, remove the robe completely, and then undo the rope on himself so he could remove the outer robe and drape it around Gabe’s shoulders. That was the reason the outer robe was so much shorter than the ones underneath. It had been tailored to Gabe’s height, and he stood almost a foot shorter than Sam. That fact alone never ceased to amuse Dean, but now was not the moment to mention that. 

“I’ll be respectful.” Sam said as he ran his fingers through his hair. 

“I know you will.” Dean said as he picked up his own robes and put them on. He’d already dressed in the linen shirt and pants. All that was left were his own robes. Belatedly he wished he and Cas had gone with a more traditional ceremony, but their wedding had been beautiful, nonetheless. He let Ellen adjust his robes and tie the rope at his waist.

“Are we ready? It’s time to get into our places.” Dean said once she was done fussing over him too. He looked down at his bare feet. Another piece of tradition. Those that lived here in the forest still did not wear coverings on their feet, except in the winter when boots were made from leathers and fur left over from hunts. He liked being barefoot. It felt natural.

“Yeah. Everything out there looks good?” Sam asked. 

“Oh, yeah, everything looks great. You’re such a diva.” Dean punched his brother’s arm playfully and grinned up at him.

“Jerk.” Sam smiled.

“Bitch.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So let me know what you think. Leave a comment, and have a great day!
> 
> By the way...you might want to put your seatbelts back on soon. Either next chapter or the one right after, there's going to be some serious drama...
> 
> It'll just depend on how wordy I get. ;)


	38. The Winchester Pack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for the wedding. Cas, Gabe and Dean all get into position to await Sam's arrival under the mating tree. But things don't go according to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a bit more backstory here, to give you an idea of how society came to be like it is, and just how far it had separated from the wolves that once filled the forests. It focuses on the Winchester pack specifically, but essentially, all packs originated from somewhere, whether it be a forest, the tundra, open plains, etc. 
> 
> I realized that up until now, I hadn't really talked about Dean and Sam's childhood. Well, this chapter will give you an idea of what they endured. 
> 
> The reason Samuel didn't take the pups after Dean left is because:
> 
> 1\. He didn't live in Lawrence. While he sniffed around after Mary died, he wasn't really "around". So when John packed the kids up and left, Samuel didn't follow. He had a life of his own in another city, so he had no clue what his grandsons were enduring. John kept the boys away, for the most part, from everyone they had known.
> 
> 2\. When Dean presented as Alpha, he became next in line to run the family. It overrode any say Samuel might have had. Granted, Dean was still a minor, so he did need someone to care for him, Dean got final say as to where he and Sam went. They wanted to be with Ellen and Bobby, so that is where they stayed. 
> 
> 3\. By the time Samuel would have figured out what was going on with his grandchildren, Ellen and Bobby would have had custody, and because of twisted and bizarre laws, he couldn't contest Dean's wishes to stay with the two Betas. Besides, he very well might not have wanted to contest it. Mary had been his main concern and she was dead. The Campbells, in this fic, were more of a loose knit pack. Nothing like the one Dean forged and now runs.

Gabe was waiting under the mating tree, an enormous oak that was centuries old. Cas stood slightly behind him. It pleased Dean to see his mate wearing the colors of the Winchester pack already. He looked up at the tree in awe as he made his way up to where he was supposed to stand. Generations of Winchesters had mated under this tree, and thousands of different ceremonies had been held right in this very field. He felt connected as he scanned the tree line and saw faces looking back. Elder Mordecai was easy to spot. Several hundred years earlier, when the first wolves began to leave the safety of the woods in favor of colonizing in cities, they had been much different from those that lived in those same cities now. Back then, Alphas were large, broad chested and muscular, able to shift quickly for hunts, mating, and defending their pack against other, invading packs. Their canines were always prominent, and they were, for lack of a better word “hairier” than their descendants that left the safety of the forests. For those that remained in the forests, time had not changed as much for them. They still retained the identifiable features of their ancestors. They still shifted, still hunted, still did what it took to protect their packs, though they did interact more with those that lives in the cities. Dean and Sam had been born right here in these very woods, though that was his father’s choice. An ancestor named Nan had left her home and traveled with her mate into the first of the big cities. They integrated into the society there, making the shift from hunters to farmers, and from there the instincts seemed to slowly die out. When Mary and John Winchester had first mated, they had come back to these woods, with the blessing of Mordecai’s father, Emmanuel to give birth to their sons in the security of the original pack. Mostly John had wanted to keep his pups as far away from Mary’s Alpha father Samuel as he possibly could. If Emmanuel had permitted it, he would have come back to the forest permanently, but there were rules in place, and the forest was no place to try and raise pups that could not shift, and Mary did not want to stay. 

A big part of the problem had been how John had come to claim Mary as his mate. John had seen Mary around town and had fallen for the blonde haired beauty and, while not rich, he was financially stable enough at the time that he was ready to take a mate, and he wanted Mary. He had asked to buy her, since she was for sale at the time, but Samuel had refused to sell her to John. John had no pack of his own at the time, and was the last of the Winchesters that existed outside of this forest. Samuel wanted someone better for his only Omega daughter. Mary though had taken a liking to John. She’d been completely unaware of John’s true nature, and she thought he would treat her with respect and love. They ran away together, and John claimed her. By the time Samuel had tracked them down, Mary was pregnant with Dean. He had decided to take the payment for his daughter, and that was the end of Samuel Campbell, or so they thought. Samuel actually loved his daughter and worried about her, and warned John that he would challenge the claim and take his daughter back if he dared hurt her. For a while everything was ok. John had money, a good job, and he took care of Mary. He had expectations of her, as many Alphas did with their Omega mates, and Mary lived up to them. She was good for John, and gave him a beautiful son, Dean. Then Mary lost a pup. John took it hard. It took a year before he recovered, and then he caught Mary during her heat and she got pregnant with another pup. She lost that one too. John blamed her. He felt that there was something wrong with his mate. After extensive exams from multiple doctors it was deemed that Mary was healthy. It was suggested that perhaps it was stress that was making her miscarry. John disagreed. He took Mary home but from that point on he ignored her. She was made to suffer through her heats alone, and raise Dean almost on her own. He started drinking and it caused problems with his job. Mary continued to be the obedient Omega. She kept the house clean, took excellent care of Dean, and tried her best to soothe John when he was angry. They mated again after almost two years of not having any intimacy at all, and Mary got pregnant. This time she was extra careful. She got Dean to help with little chores and she tried to take it easy as much as she could. This time, the pregnancy was successful and Sam was born. John was thrilled to have another son, and for a while he seemed to be back to his old self. He doted on his mate and on his sons, and he was eager to have more. They tried again when Sam turned a year old. This time Mary delivered a little girl. They were happy to have another pup, but at six days old little Caroline died suddenly. John was devastated. That was the beginning of the end of any happiness that Dean remembered as a child. From there his mother withdrew from his father. John began drinking more and staying out for days at a time while Mary tried to keep life as absolutely normal as she could for her sons. When their father was home, he was cruel, to his children and to his mate. When he was gone, Dean and Sam actually were happy. 

When Dean was nine, Mary got sick. Her sons took care of her as she put up the biggest fight of her life, but after a little more than a year of treatments and surgeries that did nothing to prolong her life, her body finally gave out. Dean was ten and Sam was seven, and they were left alone with John. Their father’s anger was a terrible thing to endure and Dean told their dad that he could take care of Sam, and to just go. Go work, go get drunk, go anywhere that kept him and his brother from getting beaten. John lost his job, then they lost the house. Samuel came sniffing around, wanting to know how his grandchildren were doing without their mother, so John packed the boys up and they left town. The next four years were absolute hell for the Winchester boys. John barely ever had any money, and sometimes there wasn’t even a roof over their heads. They slept in abandoned buildings, in people’s basements, on couches at strangers’ apartments, and anywhere John told them they had to stay. On more than one occasion Dean nearly lost his little brother to starvation or sick, twisted Alphas that were convinced he would present as an Omega, and they were eager to mate with a young pup. Dean fought those kinds of people off all the time. When he finally presented as an Alpha he knew he had to stick up for his brother. He’d been beaten for years by their father and had done his very best to keep John from hurting Sam, but it was getting to be increasingly difficult. One day, after John had left to go on another of his drinking binges, Dean packed what little belongings they had and took his little brother away. They hitched and walked clear from Kansas City all the way back to Lawrence, and right to Ellen’s doorstep. After reporting the abuse, neglect, and child endangerment to the proper authorities, Ellen and Bobby were granted custody of the boys. Bobby taught Dean how to work on cars, and from there his skills grew. Dean began working on cars for money, and he hoarded every single dollar he earned. He intended to always take care of his brother, and when Sam presented as a Beta, he’d actually been relieved. Ellen and Bobby had raised them both to have respect for all genders, but Dean had feared for what his brother’s life would have been like had he presented as an Omega. At nineteen he had saved up enough to buy his first shop. It did so well that by twenty one, he opened a second one. His chain blossomed from there. He bought a house just big enough for himself and Sam, and continued to grow his business while he searched for his true mate. 

The first Winchesters to walk out of the forests they’d called home for so many millennia before had left later than many others. Nan had been an Alpha, her mate Sen, a male Omega. They had made the trip roughly two hundred years earlier, so many of the traits that were gone in others, Dean still had. Not all Alphas could extend their fangs and claws, but he could. Sometimes he wondered, if he tried hard enough, would he be able to shift? And if he could, would he be able to shift back? As he looked at the faces watching them from the tree line, not all were in human form. More than a handful of large wolves stood watching the ceremony. Dean was unsure just how many generations separated him from Mordecai, and as he took his spot behind where Sam would come to stand, he nodded at his cousin. Mordecai nodded back.

Charlie had gone all out for the wedding. Sam had been quite picky, wanting things that not even Cas had wanted, like skirts on the chairs, an arch to pass through as they walked up the middle aisle to stand under the tree, and flowers. Damn, there were flowers _everywhere_. He looked out across the guests. There weren’t nearly as many for Gabe’s side so they had decided to just let people sit wherever they wanted. He spotted Ellen, Jo, and Bobby, giving them a small smile. Benny and his mate Andrea sat near them. He spotted Michael and a small red head. They were sitting near the back with a group of other people that he assumes were theNovak brothers and sister. A sea of dark hair with one redhead and two blondes. that made Dean chuckle. Cas said he had his mother’s hair color, and it looked like so did most of his siblings. There was one man sitting with them whose hair was actually blonde. Lighter even than Gabe’s. He couldn’t see the man’s face clearly though as he was leaning back over his seat, talking to a pretty blonde woman that Dean was guessing was Rachael. His eyes slid over the rest of the crowds. He spotted his grandfather Samuel. The man nodded, and he nodded in return.

Sam started up the center aisle and everyone turned to look as the music started. He barely got five feet before he froze, his head whipping around to look at the people to his right. Dean followed his brother’s gaze, frowning as he tried to figure out what had made him stop. 

“Shit!” He cried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So at this point I'm sure you all are figuring out what is going on. Are your seat belts tight? They better be!
> 
> Please make sure to read the notes at the end of the next chapter because I will be giving my readers a choice of which direction they want the story to go. There will be a vote and majority rules. So watch for that!
> 
> That being said, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave a comment, let me know what you think!


	39. The Unwelcome Wedding Guest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unwanted guest shows up at the wedding, and most definitely does _not_ have good intentions. It sends Sam spiraling back into the memories of his past.
> 
> READ NOTES AT BEGINNING OF CHAPTER ***AND*** AT THE END OF THE CHAPTER!!!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *************READ THESE NOTES BEFORE READING THE CHAPTER************
> 
> Ok, we're at a critical juncture in the story. I am sure many of you suspected who it is that Sam has spotted in the crowd. I will allow you to read the chapter and not spoil anything further for you on that part, but I wanted to share a few important points here.
> 
> These are A/B/O dynamics at work here, on the most fundamental level. Sam is a strong, independent Beta that was reduced to a frightened, dependent person after the torture his previous mate inflicted on him. If you can imagine the worst torture possible? From beatings to rape, to starvation, to cutting with knives, and anything else your brain could think up, that will cover the physical aspect of what Sam endured. Then there was the psychological torture. The determination to make Sam snap, to reduce him down to a quivering, terrified mass that Luke could control. Now, imagine escaping that, finding yourself again through years of therapy, a supportive family, and medication, and then suddenly being confronted by your abuser. Add in to that the fact that this is an ABO story, so SCENT plays very strongly into this as well. What you are about to witness is Sam going into shock and completely regressing. He is going to lose time here and not be able to tell the past from the present. To him, he just went back to the years he spent with his abuser. Dean knows how to handle his brother when he is in this state. Remember, keeping anything of a sexual nature out of this, Dean is the pack leader, the strong Alpha, and for years he was Sam's Alpha, both before and after Luke. In his regressed stated, Sam will need his Alpha. In that state he has all but forgotten about Gabe. This is no fault of Gabe's, but Gabe was not around when Luke was torturing Sam, so Dean will be working to bring Sam back into the present. 
> 
> Another thing, this is occurring on pack lands. Think of this like a treaty of sorts, that the original packs have made with those that moved out of the forests and off the plains, etc. If a crime is committed on pack lands, you are subject to pack laws. Outside laws hold no bearings. So, though most of the crimes were committed against Sam OFF of pack lands, new ones were committed ON pack lands, and Mordecai has the right to do whatever the hell he wants. If he chooses to kill someone on his lands, he has that right. He is not, however, a murderer. He is a strong leader.
> 
> That being said, you may have noticed that Dean bows to no one throughout this story. He is the Alpha, and while he knows how to maintain his temper, he has NEVER submitted to anyone, save for his own mate. Here you will see him submitting to Mordecai. This is again because he is on PACK LANDS. Mordecai is the Alpha here, and what he says goes. Dean has absolutely no control here. He has to obey pack laws. 
> 
> Even amidst all of this chaos, Dean will remain levelheaded because his pack needs him to be. He can't afford to lose his cool or let his fear take over. Cas feels everything that he feels, and it's not good if the Omega of the pack, the one that is supposed to be able to calm those that are upset is upset himself. 
> 
> Ok, I think that covers everything? Now, make sure you READ THE END NOTES! DO NOT LEAVE WITHOUT READING THE END NOTES!!!!!!

“Wha…” Gabe was just turning to look at him as Dean took off down the aisle.

“Dean!” Cas called out.

“Sam! Come here!” Dean ordered. Sam started and looked over at his brother. The horrified look in his eyes was something he never wanted to see again. Sam took a few steps towards him.

“Sam, Sam, Sam. Did you really think you could take another mate?” The blonde man that Dean had seen earlier sitting with Cas and Gabe’s brother stood up, the smirk on his face downright evil. Dean felt his blood run cold. It was Sam’s former mate, Luke.

Dean reached his brother who was trembling terribly and pulled him into his arms. “Security!” he screamed. Gabe was right behind him.

“What the hell happened?” he cried. When he went to touch Sam the Beta whimpered and curled into Dean’s arms. Security came running, but it was clear they had no idea what was happening. 

“Who the hell let him in?!” Dean pointed to Luke. “Get him out of here!” He motioned for security to grab the Alpha.

“That’s…my brother.” Gabe was doing the math. His expression turned to one of absolute rage. He growled and made to lunge at his brother, but Dean caught him by the arm.

“No, take Sam, get him out of here.” Dean peeled Sam off and shoved him at Gabe. Sam cried out, but then Gabe was scooping him into his arms and running. 

“Dean?” He turned to see Cas standing behind him. “What happened?”

“Your brother Luke? It’s Sam’s ex,” he replied bitterly. 

“Oh…fuck!” Cas growled and looked at the man who was fighting against the security staff that was trying to grab him. Cas’ other siblings had all scrambled to get away from their brother. The look of disgust on Michael’s face said he had no idea what Luke had done.

“No! He’s _mine_! He’ll always be mine! Get off me, damn it!” Luke snarled. He was in full raging Alpha mode, fangs out, claws extended. People everywhere were on their feet, hurrying away from the fight.

“Come here, darling.” Ellen and Bobby were there trying to get Cas to come with them, but he pulled out of their grasp.

“I’m not leaving Dean!” he shouted. Dean turned to his mate and took his face gently in his hands.

“Honey, I need you to go and check on Sam for me. Please? Seeing Luke here, at his wedding, it has caused him to fully regress. He could hurt himself, or hurt Gabe. Please make sure he is alright.”

Cas could feel the turmoil churning through his mate. The anger, the fear, and it was eating at him too. He swallowed hard and nodded.

“Alright. Please, be safe.”

“I have to be. I wouldn’t risk your life.” Dean kissed him quickly before letting go. Cas turned to Ellen and Bobby, who were talking, and they all took off in the direction of the tents, where Gabe had gone with Sam. A hand on his shoulder startled Dean. He turned to see Mordecai standing next to him. Even as tall as Dean was, Mordecai towered over him. He was an Alpha in every sense of the word.

“What has this Alpha done? Did he harm Samuel?” Mordecai asked. 

“Yes, he did. He…took Sam as a mate several years ago, and then tortured him and nearly killed him. He did terrible, awful things to Sam, and it took a very long time for my brother to be able to trust any other Alpha besides myself. He is not supposed to be here, but he is. We had no idea that he was the brother to Sam’s new mate,” Dean explained. Mordecai looked over at Luke, who was being wrestled to the ground by two of the security staff. Blood had been spilled; they could both smell it.

“He harmed a member of our pack. He is subject to the rules now that he is on our land,” Mordecai said. Dean’s eyes widened. He knew what that meant. He also knew that he had no say as to what Mordecai chose to do with Luke. 

Sam did.

Mordecai raised his head and howled. Multiple voices returned the howl from the edge of the forest. As Dean and the others watched, people (Dean was glad they were all dressed in _something_ ) and wolves came out onto the field. Two of the wolves pushed chairs out of the way as they walked over to where Luke was struggling against the men holding him down. One of the wolves grabbed him by the back of his neck, causing him to instantly go limp. For a moment Dean thought the Alpha was dead. When his claws retracted and his hands balled into fists, Dean knew the bastard was only being forced into submission.

“Fetch your brother. Be quick,” Mordecai said to Dean. 

“Yes, sir.” Dean bowed his head in submission. He was not the pack leader here, and he knew how traditions worked. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean hurried towards the tents, following his brother’s scent. He stepped into the first tent where people were all talking over one another.

“Silence!” he demanded. Everyone fell silent. “Where’s my brother?”

Ellen pointed to a partition. “He’s back there, with Cas. He won’t let anyone else near him.” 

Dean spotted Gabe kneeling a few feet beyond the partition, his face tear streaked. He went to his brother-in-law first and knelt down in front of him.

“Gabe. I don’t believe you knew that your brother was Sam’s former mate. No one holds you to blame here,” he said softly.

“H-he won’t let me near him! I need to comfort him, and he won’t even let me touch him!” Gabe sobbed. It broke Dean’s heart to see the Alpha like this. 

“He’s in shock. Instinctively, he’s anticipating being hit, and all of that abuse he suffered? It all came rushing back. He needs time. Unfortunately Mordecai has decided to take matters into his own hands. It is now under pack law, and they will hold court. Do you know how that works?” 

Gabe shook his head. “N-no, I don’t think there are any Novaks still in their original forests. I think it’s a new pack that took over the territory. We never connected with our origins, not like you did.”

“My pack, we came back here often when I was a kid. My mother insisted that we learn pack traditions, and so we did. Even back at home she taught us. This…I am not the pack leader here, Mordecai is. It’s now out of my hands completely. I must submit to him and his laws. Luke, he hurt a member of the pack. That is against the law. He came here with the intention of harming Sam again, whether it is physical or psychological harm, he broke the law by coming here onto pack land. They’re… holding a trial.”

Gabe wiped the tears from his eyes and looked up at him. “What does that mean?”

“That means he is going to face a tribunal for the crimes he committed. We have no say over the outcome. Sam does,” Dean explained. Gabe stared at him for a moment.

“Sam…decides the level of punishment?”

Dean nodded. “He has the right to call for his execution if he so desires.”

Gabe stared blankly at him for a long moment. He was torn. There had been no clue, no suggestion that his own _brother_ had been Sam’s abusive former mate. He’d only spoken briefly once to Luke and hadn’t expected him to show up at the wedding. Now he knew _why_ the bastard had shown up. It wasn’t to support Gabe, it was to torment Sam. Luke was family, but he was a sick, sadistic bastard.

“Good. It is Sam’s decision, and I’ll support whatever he chooses,” he said. Dean patted his shoulder. 

“I need to bring him to Mordecai. You…should come too, but let me talk to him first.” 

Gabe nodded. “O-ok.”

Dean stood up and took a deep breath before stepping around the partition. 

“Sammy?” he said softly.

“Dean?” Cas’ voice was barely more than a whisper. He followed his mate’s voice over to the far corner where he found Sam curled up in Cas’ lap. It had been years since he’d seen his brother like this, and he never wanted to see him in this kind of state ever again. His own anger flared once again knowing that Luke had managed to cause this kind of hurt once more. He approached his brother slowly. Sam was trembling still; he could see it. 

“Sammy, come here, buddy. It’s Dean.” He knelt down, keeping his movements slow. Sam turned to look at him. The haunted look in his eyes scared Dean. Sam would no doubt need therapy again after this. Possibly even hospitalization. He held out his arms and slowly Sam crawled out of Cas’ lap and into his brother’s arms.

“He’s going to kill me, Dean. He came to kill me,” Sam whispered. He clung to the front of Dean’s robes and looked up at him with wide, frightened eyes. “He cut me, Dean! It hurt…it hurt so much…”

Dean wrapped his arms around his brother and rocked him as he tried to soothe him.

“He can’t hurt you, Sammy. I will never let him hurt you again. I made that promise to you, and I will keep it. He’s not going to hurt you.” It was a mantra he had come to repeat over and over years earlier when he had first freed Sam from Luke’s control, and he repeated it now. 

“Dean? Where is he?” Cas asked.

“He’s…being put on trial,” Dean replied. Sam stirred in his arms and looked up at him.

“Trial?”

“Yes. Mordecai is holding Luke accountable for the crimes he committed against you. We may not live here in the forest but they consider us to be an extended part of the pack, and for that reason, he has committed a crime by simply coming onto pack lands and trying to hurt you again. Mordecai has called for you,” Dean explained to his brother.

“Me? Why?”

“I am not pack leader here, Sammy. Mordecai is. And…we know the laws. We have to be there. _You_ have to be there.” 

“They’re putting him on trial.” Sam’s gaze wandered off as he weighed the seriousness of that.

“They are, and it’s your decision what his punishment should be.” 

“What do you mean, Dean? What kind of punishment are we talking about?” Cas asked. Dean frowned and shook his head. He needed Cas to be quiet for the moment. Thankfully his mate was smart and figured out what he was talking about. The Omega covered his mouth and looked away in horror.

“We have to go, Sam. Mordecai has given an order and we have to obey it,” Dean told his brother. Sam was still shaking as he got to his feet.

“I-I need m-my pills, Dean.” The trembling could even be heard in Sam’s voice.

“I don’t have them here. Do you still have any?” Dean asked. Sam looked ashamed as he nodded.

“I-I’m still on anxiety pills. They’re in my bag. Please…” Sam begged. They were standing in the tent Gabe had gotten dressed in, not Sam’s. Dean turned to his mate.

“Can you go grab Sam’s bag? He needs his medicine.”

Cas got to his feet and nodded. “I’ll be back in just a minute.” He hurried out of the tent.

“Sam, Gabe is worried about you. He’s your mate. He will never, ever let Luke hurt you, but he’s scared too, for you. He’s scared you don’t want him anymore. He did not know Luke was your former mate. You can’t blame him for this.” Dean grabbed his brother’s chin and forced him to make eye contact. “This is not Gabe’s fault, do you understand me?”

“Y-yeah. I-I n-need my pills, Dean. I can’t….I can’t do this without them.”

“Cas is getting them for you, ok? Just hang on, it’s going to be ok.” Dean knew how to handle his brother when he was on edge like this. Ellen knew too, which was why Gabe hadn’t come around the corner yet. She was making him sit tight until Dean could calm Sam down. Sam nodded as he wrapped his arms around himself. He stuck close to his brother. If Dean shifted his weight, Sam moved closer. In his repressed state, Dean was his Alpha and the only one that could protect him. Cas came back, the bag in one hand, the bottle of pills in the other.

“Is this what he needs?” 

“Yes, give it here. Can you find some water?” Dean asked. Cas nodded and handed the pills over. He was gone only a moment before he was back and handing over a bottle of water. Dean opened the bottle of water after he shook 2 pills into Sam’s hand.

“Here, swallow these. We need to get out there before Mordecai sends the wolves.” 

Sam looked fearfully towards the tent opening. He knew the elder would do that if they didn’t hurry. He popped the pills in his mouth and accepted the bottle of water to swallow them down.

“Sam, who is your mate?” Dean asked firmly. Sam blinked.

“Sam, _who is your mate_?” Dean repeated. 

“G-Gabe?”

Dean nodded. “That’s right. Your mate needs to make sure you are ok. He is worried about you. I am going to bring him back here, and you will let him help you. Do you understand?” Dean spoke firmly to his brother as his own mate looked on.

“Y-yes. I-I need him.” It was spoken softly, but Dean accepted it. He leaned around the partition, eyes locking on Gabe who was standing nervously a few feet away.

“Wipe your eyes and lose the nervous vibe. You need to be his Alpha right now. He needs you,” he said. Gabe nodded, wiping at his eyes as he hurried over. When he stepped around the corner Sam flinched and whimpered.

“No, Gabe is your mate and he is here to help you.” Dean maintained his firm tone and Sam looked up at him for a moment before looking at Gabe.

“I-I’m sorry. I’m scared.” 

Gabe, to Dean’s relief didn’t try to coddle Sam. He simply held out his arms and Sam went to him.

“No one is going to hurt you, Sam. I won’t let them. I promised you that a long time ago, and I will keep that promise.” 

Dean let out a sigh of relief. A moment later his mate was wrapping his arms around him and burying his nose against his neck.

“Are you ok?” Cas asked him.

“Yeah. I’m just worried about Sam.” He hugged his mate and rested his cheek atop the man’s head as he watched Gabe soothe his brother. Outside the wolves began to howl.

“We have to go. Now.” Dean took his mate by the hand and they walked over to where Gabe stood a few feet away with Sam. It would never seem odd to him how Sam looked trying to curl himself into the smaller man’s embrace, but if Gabe was able to calm Sam down, he would forever refrain from the short jokes. Sam stood up at the sound of the howling.

“They’re calling to me.”

Dean nodded. “They are. It’s time.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, roller coaster of a chapter, I am sure, but here is where I am going to give my readers a choice. READ EVERYTHING I WRITE HERE, AND THINK IT THROUGH COMPLETELY BEFORE YOU MAKE A DECISION!!!!!
> 
> I am going to give my readers the choice as to whether Luke lives or dies. I mulled it over and over, and I have already written it both ways, but at first I couldn't decide which way I wanted to go. After writing it both ways, I knew how I wanted this decision to go, but I am still going to leave the decision up to you guys. Now, here are the things you need to weigh in on:
> 
> 1.) Luke is a douche to the nth degree, yes. He tortured Sam and nearly destroyed him psychologically, all because he could. BUT...he did it OFF OF PACK LANDS.
> 
> 2.) Luke is a NOVAK. BROTHER TO CAS AND GABE. To call for Luke's death is to possibly cause an irrepairable rift between himself and his current mate. Gabe is just now reconnecting with his long lost siblings. Same for Cas. Not that they would want anything to do with Luke after this, but Michael might. Rachael might. Bartholomew might. Get my drift? Sam risks alienating his entire extended family before he even gets to know them.
> 
> 3.) Then there is the fact that IF he calls for Luke's death, this is a burden that Sam will have to carry around with him FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE. Sam is a gentle, loving soul. He is not a murderer, but he may end up feeling like one if he has to make this call. 
> 
> 4.) Sam holds the option of deferring his decision to someone else, someone he trusts to make the decision on his behalf, and with his best interest in mind. That person may or may not demand Luke's execution, but it would be bias and based on past crimes. The crimes that Luke is currently guilty of is coming on to pack lands with the intent of either physically or emotionally harming Sam, and potentially challenging Gabe, AFTER he had proven to be a bad Alpha. Pack law dictates that all orientations are EQUAL, and that an Alpha is to not only show love and respect for their mate, but they are to take care of their mate. Think of the "For better or for worse" aspect of marriage vows. It's not that a Beta or Omega is expected to submit, because they absolutely are not, but the Alpha is supposed to take care of their mate just as their mate is supposed to take care of them. EQUALITY. Luke broke that the first time he raised a hand to Sam, and then to come back onto pack lands and try to perpetuate that? That's a HUGE no no.
> 
> I will warn you now, Luke is completely ignorant of pack rules and laws. His family has not seen a forest in probably the better part of three hundred years. They basically walked out and shunned everything they had left behind. Dean and Sam however were raised will full knowledge of how things work on pack lands because he and his brother spent much of their childhood there. So Luke is rather narcissistic, smug, and thanks to a shitty father, thinks Alphas are superior and Betas and Omegas are designed to submit and be nothing more than property to be dealt with as the Alpha sees fit. He doesn't think he had anything to fear from Mordecai or the other members of the pack. What he does not know yet is that here? In the forest? Omegas and Betas can and will have final say.
> 
> I should also mention that IF you choose to let Luke live, he is not going to walk away scot free. He will NEVER be allowed to have the opportunity to hurt Sam again in any way. And it's ok to worry about Sam's current mental state. He will need hospitalization for a while after this, and extensive therapy again, but if there is one constant in his life, it's his family. And they will stick by him, including his mate. He is loved, and he always will be.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I look forward to seeing the comments after this!


	40. The Verdict

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The tribunal meets and a verdict is demanded. Sam has a difficult decision to make.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to say thank you to everyone that weighed in on whether Luke should live or die. It was an interesting experiment, I just wish that it had not digressed the way it did. Anyway, by popular demand, this was the final verdict. In a later chapter Dean will check back with the elders and at that time you will learn what the elders actually did. But right now, this chapter is about Sam and about his pack supporting him.
> 
> I do hope you enjoy this chapter!

Gabe kept an arm around Sam as they exited the tent. They were immediately flanked by two enormous wolves.

“It’s alright, they are our guides to the trial. We must follow them,” Dean said. He and Cas had followed Sam and Gabe out of the tent. Behind them Ellen and Bobby were slowly trailing behind. Dean turned to them.

“Go, gather the guests in the seating area where the reception was to be held. After that, can you please check on our pups? I need to bear witness for Sam, and I’m taking Cas with me.”

Ellen nodded. “Of course, sweetheart.” She pressed her fingers to her lips before pointed them in his direction. He offered a weak smile before turning to hurry after his brother. Cas followed him.

“Dean…” Sam looked back repeatedly to make sure his brother was still there.

“I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. Gabe is here too. He will keep you safe,” Dean told him. Sam turned to look at his mate.

“I’ve got you, Sam. He’s never going to touch you again, that’s my solemn promise to you.” There was steel in Gabe’s voice, and Dean could see then what a truly strong Alpha he was. He was the mate Sam had always wanted. Dean was glad his brother had him now when he needed him most.

The wolves led them across the clearing and into the tree line. It was a quiet walk, everyone concentrating on their steps as they went. After a few minutes they entered another smaller clearing. This one had dwellings around it. They were guided to a building that was larger than the others at the far end where two men stood at the doors. At their approach the men opened the doors. 

Mordecai sat in a chair crafted from tree trunks to resemble a sort of throne. On either side of him sat the other elders. There were six in all. It pleased Dean to see that two of the elders were Omegas, and that one of them was Reeva, Mordecai's sister. There was one other Alpha besides Mordecai, and two Betas. A true pack tribunal was one of equality. Mordecai motioned for them to take their seats on the right where tree stumps had been cut and served as stools. There were only two so Dean did what he knew was expected of him. He motioned to one seat for Cas to sit, and then knelt at his side.

“What are you doing down there?” Cas whispered.

“This is pack law. Omegas take priority here. Sam will sit on the other stool.” Dean looked at his brother in law who nodded and guided Sam over to the second stool, then knelt down next to him. Luke was nowhere to be seen.

“Dean, do you bear witness for your brother, Samuel?” Mordecai asked.

“Yes, Alpha, I do. I saw the things that were done to hurt my brother, and I saw him almost die at the other Alpha’s hands.” Dean replied.

“Samuel. Luke was your Alpha, is this correct? He took you as his mate, promised to care for you, and to be your Alpha, your protector and caretaker?” Mordecai turned dark eyes on Sam.

“Y-yes, Alpha. He took me as his mate and made those promises. Then he broke them.”

“Show me,” Mordecai demanded. Sam flinched at the order, but he was quick to obey. He stood up and undid the robes. Gabe stood up to help him out of them, and then Sam was pulling the linen tunic over his head. 

“Come closer,” Reeva motioned for Sam to go to them, so he did. He turned around so they got a good look at all the scars that littered his skin. Growling could be heard amongst the elders, and Sam instinctively dropped his head in submission.

“You may sit down,” Mordecai told him. Sam pulled his tunic back over his head as he returned to his mate. Gabe helped him back into the robes and guided him back onto his stool.

“And your outside laws, they did nothing to punish this Alpha for the crimes he committed?” One of the Betas asked.

“No, he received no punishment.” Sam confirmed. Again the elders growled. Cas looked worriedly at his mate, but Dean held up a single finger to his own lips, a warning not to speak.

“Bring him in!” the male Omega ordered. Two massive Alphas dragged Luke in and forced him to his knees in the center of the room, facing the elders.

“Do you know why you are here?” Mordecai asked him.

“I was invited!” Luke snapped. Mordecai looked up at Dean.

“Is this true?”

“It was a mistake, Alpha. His last name is not Novak. Another Beta in my pack sent out an invitation to Luke Novak, not to Luke Freeman. If we had known, we never would have allowed him to come. He changed his name, Alpha. We had no idea he had done that,” Dean replied. He knew how that would sound to the elders. It would seem like Luke not only lied, but had turned his back on his pack. That was something they frowned deeply upon. Mordecai looked at Luke for a moment before speaking quietly to the other elders. When Luke tried to look up at them he was smacked hard in the back of the head until he lowered his eyes to the floor again. When he growled at one of the Alphas holding him, he was shown bared fangs, which quickly shut his aggression down.

“What say you, Alpha as to the charges that you harmed your Beta?” the male Omega asked. Luke didn’t answer right away, at least, not until Mordecai growled loudly enough that the sound reverberated off every wall.

“He was mine. I could do with him as I pleased,” the Alpha replied. His tone was whiney. At least he wasn’t stupid enough to try and challenge Mordecai again.

“No, that is untrue. Taking a mate is to protect and nurture them, to care for them _as your equal_. You are no better than a Beta or an Omega. Without them a pack would be nothing. You failed your duties as an Alpha, and now you stand before us to face punishment for your transgressions.”

Dean felt when his mate slipped a hand into his and squeezed. He could feel Cas’ fear, but there was anger in there too. Who it was directed at though, he couldn’t tell. When he looked over at his brother he could see Gabe trying to soothe Sam. 

“Elder Reeva, why don’t you explain the process to Alpha Luke here.” Mordecai turned to the female Omega, and she nodded in agreement before standing up. She walked over to where Luke was still being forced to kneel.

“You have brought harm to a member of our pack. While Samuel is not part of the pack that lives here, in the forest, he is still a beloved member. He deserves respect. You have broken that. He deserves to be cared for. You have broken that. He deserves to be protected. You have broken that. You will now be tried for your crimes. Do you understand this?” she asked. When he didn’t answer, the Alpha that had a grip on the back of Luke’s neck extended his claws, digging them into the sensitive skin. Luke snarled.

“Yes, I understand.” 

“And do you understand that while you are facing this tribunal, it is for the task of collecting the necessary information so that a punishment may be decided upon?” She tapped him hard on the head when he didn’t respond.

“I didn’t _do_ anything wrong!” he snapped.

Sam buried his face in Gabe’s shoulder at the sound of Luke raising his voice. Reeva frowned at his reaction. Dean got the impression that if it were up to her, Luke’s punishment right then and there would be death.

“One last thing, Alpha Luke. It is the one that you transgressed against that will decide your fate. Your need to control, to dominate and force another to submit in the cruelest of ways possible will now be the factor that will weigh in Samuel’s decision.” She turned to head back to her seat. 

“What? What do you mean Samuel’s decision?” Luke tried to lift his head but there were claws embedded in his skin. At best he was able to glance back at Sam and Gabe. His own brother was glaring at him. He tilted his head a bit more to see Cas glaring at him as well.

“As a lawyer you should really have read up on pack laws before you stepped foot here. Your need to terrorize my brother? You broke several laws doing that. Now you’re going to be held accountable for _everything_.” Dean’s tone was smug, but he didn’t care. His hatred for Luke was unfathomable. 

“Samuel, are you prepared to make a decision?” Mordecai asked.

“I…” Sam grabbed on to Gabe even tighter.

“Wait! Wait! I should get a say! I wasn’t going to kill him! I swear I wasn’t!” Luke cried. The stink of his fear filled the room.

“You had your say when you chose to torture your mate. If the bond were not already severed, we’d have done so this day. You do not deserve Samuel.” Mordecai’s gaze locked on Gabe.

“What are your intentions, Alpha? Will you treat him with the same cruelty and indifference?”

“I would never. He’s my mate and my equal. I love him and will forever treat him with the respect he deserves. I _will_ take care of him,” Gabe replied. There was a fierce determination in his voice.

“And what is your opinion on the crimes Alpha Luke has committed?” Reeva asked him.

Gabe looked at his brother in disgust. “I believe he needs to be punished.”

“And if your mate calls for his execution?”

“I stand by any decision he makes,” Gabe said. Reeva seemed mildly impressed. 

“Gabe?” Cas looked at his brother in shock.

“He stopped being our brother a long time ago, Cassie. And his opinion of you is that you are worthless. If he is not punished now there is nothing stopping him from going out and doing what he did to Sam to another Beta or Omega, and this one might not be so lucky. This kind of thinking in our pack was a big reason why I chose to leave the Novak pack completely and join the Winchester pack. Don’t you understand that?” Gabe asked. Cas frowned and looked at Luke for a moment before looking down at his own mate, who still knelt beside him. He realized Luke was no better than Alistair had been.

“You’re right,” he conceded.

“And what is your opinion then, Omega?” Reeva asked.

“I believe his crimes need to be punished. He should not be permitted to commit such atrocities again. I only wish there had been a tribunal for the crimes Alistair had committed against me last year,” Cas replied. 

“Who is this Alistair? What crimes did he commit? You have the right to call for a trial at any time. If he steps onto this land, he faces our laws,” Mordecai said. Cas sat up a little straighter.

“That will not be necessary as Alistair is now dead. He threatened to kill my mate, so I killed him.”

Reeva and the male Omega both smiled. Mordecai actually looked impressed.

“Samuel, what is your decision?” Mordecai asked. Sam looked up, his eyes flitting briefly to Luke before looking at Mordecai and the other elders.

“Is the decision only life or death?” he asked.

“Outside laws will permit him to walk free. They already did or he would not have come here today. If you choose to allow him to live and be allowed to leave, he will go on to commit the same atrocities to another. It is the recommendation of the council that death be the final judgment. You will not be required to stay and witness the execution if you do not wish to, but you will save the life of at least one other if this is the decision you make. You may confer with your Alpha, your brother, and his Omega. We will wait.” Mordecai sat back and crossed his arms to do exactly that.

Gabe could feel how heavily his mate was leaning upon him. His heartbeat had slowed down and his trembling had finally stopped. He knew the anxiety meds had finally kicked in. Sam was calm, so whatever decision he made, it would not be done in a panic. He stroked his mate’s back gently.

“What do you all think?” Sam kept his voice low so Luke would not hear. The Alpha was busy whining and complaining to the elders, so he was fairly confident the man wasn’t listening in on them.

“You know my opinion, Sammy. I challenged him to get you back because he didn’t love you and care for you the way he had promised he would. Instead, he tried to destroy you. What I didn’t tell you was that he threatened to kill me if he ever saw me again. After I took you to the hospital, I had to be treated as well. He broke six of my ribs and my arm, as well as trying to rip my throat out. And he told me it was his right to kill you if that was what he wanted, because you were his _property_. I’ve kept an eye on him since I took you away because I needed to make sure he wasn’t coming back after you again. So he can burn in hell for all I care,” Dean said. Sam looked at Cas.

“He’s your brother. What do you say?”

Cas chewed on his lip for a moment as he looked from his eldest brother back to Sam.

“He’s…no brother of mine. You are my brother, Sam. What he did, it was worse than anything our father ever did. And my father was a strict, cruel man. I believe Luke wanted to kill you, and I believe he would have succeeded had Dean not intervened and taken you out of that situation. No one should ever have been treated the way you were. Living in The District, I saw more atrocities than I care to ever think about, and I’ve witnessed the torture some of my dearest friends endured at the hands of cruel Alphas. What he did to you? That was up there with some of the cruelest of things I’d heard were done. And…I…saw Luke, down in The District, coming and going from the brothels. I didn’t pick up on his scent because I was too afraid to leave my apartment, but I watched many a night from my apartment, and it was definitely him. I can only imagine what he was doing to those poor Omegas.” Cas shook his head sadly. “I know biology states that he is my brother, but he was never a brother to me. I never knew him, he was gone by the time I was old enough to remember my older siblings. I-I am not sure if I advocate for death, but if there is no other permanent form of punishment, then…I am in agreement with Dean. He needs to die.”

“Gabe?” Sam turned to his mate. This was the opinion that mattered the most. If Gabe wanted Luke to live and he chose death, then they might never have a healthy relationship again.

“Look, whatever you decide, I will support it. I’m not sure even Michael knows this, but Luke is technically our half-brother. Our mother was caught by another Alpha right before my father took her. It was part of the reason he agreed to take her as his mate. He got an enormous dowry for taking her _and_ her pup. Michael was oblivious to a lot of things, but I know, because I overheard the conversations between our parents when they thought I was in bed. Our father didn’t want the younger kids to know, so it became one of the million different forbidden topics. And Luke, he wasn’t raised any different than the rest of us, but he was definitely the one most influenced by our father’s cruelty. He wanted to emulate him. I…thought he had changed. Michael told me he was different. When I talked to him, he seemed so changed from the man I once knew. I know how cruel my brother can be, and I know that if he is set free, the chances that he will go out into the world and do it again are quite high. I never thought I would support the decision to have one of my own siblings executed, but I know the things he did to you, Sam. And if it was within my power to kill him with my own two hands, I would, and there would be absolutely no regrets because I love you, and I would do anything to protect you and keep you safe.” Gabe placed a soft kiss to Sam’s forehead. “I stand by whatever decision you make.”

Sam turned to look at Mordecai and the other elders. They were watching him with patient understanding. They knew the burden of calling for the death of another, and that he would have to bear the knowledge that he was responsible for another man’s death for the rest of his life. This was pack law. Even if he said no, Mordecai and the elders could still decide to execute him.

“This is a decision that carries a lot of weight with it. Is there any other punishment besides death?” He had to at least ask.

“It is possible that there may be…other punishments that can be administered. None will be pleasant, and if you decide to choose an alternative form, it will be at our discretion which one we will give,” Reeva replied.

“I can’t.” Sam shook his head as he looked from his brother to his mate and back again. “I just can’t carry that kind of guilt upon my shoulders. I know he tried to kill me, and he came damn close, but I just…I couldn’t live with myself if I had to carry around that kind of guilt for the rest of my life.”

“I understand,” Dean said. He looked up at Mordecai and the others. “Can the decision be given to one of us to make if he does not want to make it?”

Mordecai conferred with the others for a moment before nodding. “He may.”

Dean looked at his brother again. “You can give the decision to me or to Gabe.”

“Or me. He can count on me to look after his best interests,” Cas added.

“Honey, do you want that kind of burden? Could you live with yourself knowing you called for the death of your own brother?” Dean asked him.

“I am the only one among us that has killed before, right?” Cas looked at each man. The reluctant nod each one gave told him that he was correct, but they didn’t like where he was going with this. “Well, I carry that guilt with me, and I will for the rest of my life. I can carry this, too, knowing that another horrible Alpha was taken off the streets.”

“So you’d choose execution?” Sam asked. Cas hesitated only a moment before nodding.

“I believe I would, if it meant keeping you and others safe.”

Sam chewed on his lip as he thought it over. “What about you, Dean?” 

“Well I’m sure as hell not going to set the bastard free. And I don’t think you want him free either. You’ve not been able to breathe freely knowing he was walking around out there, and that he could show up at any minute. Until you met Gabe, that is. Will you feel safe if he is out there walking around?” Dean asked. 

“No, I’ll be terrified every moment of every day,” Sam admitted. Gabe lifted his hand and kissed the back of it. He knew his Alpha would protect him, but a part of him would live in permanent fear if Luke was let go. “What about you, Gabe?”

Gabe turned back to the elders. “Is one of the punishments something that will prevent him from permanently returning to society?”

“All forms of punishment will prevent him from ever leaving here. It is our intention to make sure that Samuel never fears this Alpha again as long as he lives,” the male Beta replied.

Gabe turned back to his mate. “I can make this decision for you. I would choose for him to be punished but not killed. I too find it difficult to call for his death, and I would not wish that burden to be put upon you. I love you, Sam. Let me do this for you.”

Sam nodded. “I choose to pass the decision to my mate, Gabriel Novak…Winchester.”

“He is not a Winchester yet,” Mordecai reminded him.

“He will be once we get back out there to complete the ceremony. Either way, I give it to him.”

Mordecai turned his attention to Gabe. “Alpha Gabriel, what say you?”

“I say he should be given an alternate form of punishment. Death is too easy for him. He deserves to suffer and pay for what he has done to my mate, and what he has done to other Betas and Omegas. It has come to our attention that Sam…uel is not the only person that he has tortured. He should be held accountable every day for the rest of his life for what he did to my mate, and he should be held accountable for all of the pain and misery he inflicted,” Gabe replied firmly.

“And so, sentence has been passed. Do we agree on this punishment?” Mordecai asked the other elders. Each one nodded in agreement, except the male Omega. He shook his head and called for death.

“Ruling agrees. Remove him from our presence,” Mordecai indicated to the Alphas that were still holding Luke. He struggled against them until his head was forced down once again. They led him from the room. Mordecai and Reeva stood and came down to stand before them.

“Pack law supersedes outside laws. Remember this. If others come looking for him, they too will be subject to our laws,” Reeva reminded them.

“I will notify the proper authorities.” Dean bowed his head in submission.

“You are safe, Samuel. No harm will come from Alpha Luke ever again. I expect that your new Alpha will treat you with the love and respect that you deserve,” Mordecai said.

“He will. He already does and will continue to do so.” Sam smiled at his mate. He loved Gabe so much and trusted him in a way that he had not thought he’d ever be capable of doing again with anyone but Dean.

“Then let the ceremony be completed,” Mordecai announced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yes, Luke lives, but as I'm sure you all can figure out, the forest pack does _not_ like him, and his punishment will be very harsh. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sam is of course not out of the woods just yet (pun not intended). He won't walk away from this unaffected. Their pack will need to heal, and they will have to help Sam as best they can. But at least the a-hole can't hurt Sam ever again.
> 
> Leave a comment, let me know what you thought, and thank you to everyone that weighed in on the final decision!


	41. Novak Blowout

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the ceremony there is a fight at the reception when the Novak brothers are demanding to know what became of Luke. Cas tries to defuse the situtation but unfortunately his brother Bartholomew shares Luke's views towards Omegas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You all knew the Novaks weren't going to just let this go. They would want to know what was happening. Cas is going to try to calm all of the raging Alpha hormones before an actual fight errupts, but he has his work cut out for him. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

The chairs had been fixed and there was no sign that any kind of scuffle had ever taken place. People looked curiously at them as Gabe led Sam up to the tree and took his hand. Dean kissed his own mate softly on the cheek before moving to stand behind Sam. Cas went to stand behind Gabe.

“Where’s the minister?” Dean asked.

“Here I am!” A short, bald man in a black robe announced as he hurried over. People were returning to the seats, and they waited until everyone was back and sitting quietly before they proceeded. Dean could see the Novak siblings all looking around, as if they expected Luke to suddenly return.

“We’re sticking to tradition, Padre.” Gabe said to the minister.

“Ok, well, let me open up my book here. I wrote the traditions down…” The man licked the tips of his fingers and flipped the pages of the book he was holding until he reached the right one. “Ah!” He looked up at Gabe first.

“As Alpha, do you promise to protect and to care for your Beta, to love, honor, and cherish him, and do everything within your power to make him happy for all the rest of his days?” 

“I do,” Gabe replied.

The minister turned to Sam. “And as Beta, do you promise to protect, and to care for your Alpha, to love, honor, and cherish him, and do everything within your power to make him happy for all the rest of his days?”

“I do,” Sam replied.

“I bind you together, as mates, as husbands, now and forever. Castiel, please help Alpha Gabriel remove the robe of his former pack,” the minister instructed. Cas waited until his brother turned to face him before undoing the rope belt and slipping the robe from his shoulders.

The minister turned to Dean. “Dean, please help Samuel to remove the robe of his pack so that he may place it on his mate’s shoulders.” 

Sam turned to face his brother and Dean untied the knot on his rope belt. He slid the outer robe from Sam’s shoulders and held it out to him. Sam took it and turned back to face the minister.

“As Samuel places these robes upon his mate, Gabriel will now become one with the Winchester pack. He will be bound to them in life, in love, and in loyalty, for all the rest of his days.” The minister motioned for Sam to go ahead, and the Beta crossed the few feet that would take him to his mate. Gabe turned so Sam could slip the new robe on his shoulders. When he turned back around Sam took the rope from Cas and secured it around Gabe’s waist.

“I now pronounce them husbands! You may kiss.” 

Gabe pulled Sam into his arms and kissed him with everything he had.

“I love you, Sam,” he whispered against his mate’s ear.

“I love you too, and I always will,” Sam promised.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So…what exactly happened?” Ellen asked as they started for the reception area, which was at the other end of the clearing.

“We’re not allowed to say.” Dean replied.

“That’s horse shit and you know it,” Bobby groused. Dean sighed.

“Let me put it this way, with the Novak clan all here, I _won’t_ talk about it. So, later, ok?”

“Sam, he’s ok though? He really scared me.” Ellen looked over towards where Sam and Gabe were greeting their guests. All of the enthusiasm that Sam had been filled with before the wedding was gone now. He seemed drained.

“No, he’s not alright. I talked to Gabe and tomorrow morning Sam is checking himself into the hospital. He needs time to process and deal with everything that happened today. His mate won’t be leaving his side the rest of the night, and if he has to, Cas will stay close,” Dean said. Suddenly he remembered his pups. “Are the girls ok?”

“Oh, yes, they’re feeling better too. Fevers seem to have broke for them both. Elder Reeva went to see them. She loves the pups, always has,” Ellen replied. Dean liked that. He wished they’d come here to have the pups rather than at home. It was his goal to teach his children their heritage, and to bring them around the extended pack so they could learn the laws and traditions.

Voices raising drew their attention and he was pulled from thoughts of his children to find Gabe in a heated argument with Michael and another of his brothers. He hurried over to try and calm things down before another law was broken.

“What’s going on?” He asked.

“Where is Luke?” Bartholomew demanded.

“He has been remanded to the pack. He broke pack law,” Dean replied.

“How? What law did he break?” The other man was damn close to growling. It was quickly pissing Dean off.

“Wait.” Cas moved between his brother Bartholomew and Dean. “Bartholomew, allow me to explain.”

The Alpha glared for a moment before nodding. “Explain.”

“Ok, so Luke, he took Sam, Gabe’s mate, as his mate several years ago. He was cruel and abusive to Sam. He beat him and starved him, and he caused horribly physical and psychological damage. Dean found out and had to challenge Luke to get him back. Dean broke their mating bond, and then Sam had to spend a long time in the hospital because of how close he had come to dying. Dean put a restraining order on Luke, but because Luke changed his last name, no one had any idea he was the same Luke Novak that had been invited today. Luke was not welcome here, and he came onto pack land with the intentions of tormenting Sam and challenging Gabe. These are the laws that Luke broke. He did not honor and protect his mate, but instead chose to torture and attempt to kill him. And then to come onto pack lands and try to continue it…he brought this upon himself.” Cas kept his tone gentle, and tried to keep his scent neutral as well. As the Omega, he was attempting to calm the angry Alphas around him.

“Honor and protect?” Bartholomew spat the words out as though they tasted bad. “What a crock of shit. I _will_ be contacting my lawyer, and there better not be a single hair on my brother’s head harmed or I’ll see to it that every member of this pack goes to prison and never sees the light of day!”

“What? No!” Michael shook his head vehemently. “You can’t do that! Pack law, on wolf land makes any outside laws null and void, even I know that! Anyone else steps foot here and tries to intervene, they can and _will_ be executed on the spot! Are you an idiot?!”

“Stop! Everyone!” A man much younger than the others cried. His scent told Dean he was a Beta. “Luke screwed up, and he should pay for his crimes. I’m guessing Dean here tried to press charges against him, but they didn’t stick out there in the city, did they? Laws are still antiquated and benefit only the Alphas. Right?” The man looked at Dean.

“You’d be right. My brother lay there in the hospital, struggling to breathe through broken ribs and a punctured lung and bruised trachea, and Luke was set free. It’s not even the physical damage he caused that angers me the most, it’s all of the psychological damage he did. My brother was _terrified_ of Alphas after what Luke had done to him. It took a long time and a lot of therapy before he could start learning to trust anyone but me, and he almost didn’t want to give Gabe a chance. This is the damage Luke did, and this is what I wanted him to pay for the most,” Dean said.

“Alfie…” Bartholomew sighed. Dean frowned. He didn’t remember Gabe or Cas mentioning a brother by that name, but they did have one Beta brother. Samandriel.

“I-Is he…ever getting out?” The blonde woman Dean had seen Luke talking with earlier asked.

“…No.” He replied.

“Oh thank God!” She gasped and pressed a hand to her chest before leaning against the man next to her. “He was just like father, but worse!”

“Pack law, doesn’t that dictate that the one who the crimes were committed against gets to choose the punishment?” Michael asked. All eyes turned to look at Sam. Gabe noticed, and Dean saw the change in his demeanor. He marched over to where they stood.

“Why are you all looking at Sam?” 

“He’s the one that decided our brother should be punished,” Bartholomew growled. Gabe growled right back, flashing his fangs. 

“He did _not_! It was too heavy a burden for him to bear so I made the decision. Don’t you dare blame him! The things Luke did to him…they were horrible. He bears so many scars. No one should have to suffer the way he did.”

Bartholomew rolled his eyes and snorted. “He’s _just_ a Beta.”

Gabe growled. Dean put a hand on his arm. “Don’t,” he warned.

“At this time I believe your presence is disrupting the celebration, so Bartholomew, I must ask you to leave. Your mate, however, may stay if she so desires.” Cas said. His sister-in-law gave a nervous smile until her mate’s growl grew louder. She cringed and whimpered as she moved away from him.

“Oh, because your mate is running for mayor and thinks Omegas are equal, you actually think you are? How dare you order me to leave!” Bartholomew roared. Before Dean or anyone else could react, the wolves appeared. The Alpha immediately stepped back, eyeing them warily.

“Would you like to be the next one on trial?” Cas asked him.

“Putrid, Omega filth,” Bartholomew spat. Cas shook his head. He was ashamed that this man was of any biological relation to him at all.

“Call me what you will, but the fact of the matter is that you are making threats against a member of our pack. Me. And regardless of what you “think” about Omegas, we are equal to Alphas. It is a shame that Father warped your mind the way he did. Michael, do you agree with Bartholomew?” Cas turned his gaze on the other Alpha.

“Of course not. I will be honest, for a time in my early years I thought I was superior to them, but then I met Anna, and I knew I could never treat her the way our father treated our mother. I like to think I treat my mate with the love and respect that she deserves.” He looked at the redhead standing next to him. She smiled and nodded.

“And you do. I feel equal in our relationship,” she said. He looked at Cas again.

“I don’t think Omegas are useless, or good for nothing but breeding. I do not share Bartholomew’s views.”

“I am just a Beta, but I don’t share them either. I believe everyone is equal,” Alfie said.

“I agree,” Rachael said. She looked at her own mate who nodded.

“Good.” Cas looked at the wolves. “Would you kindly escort this man off pack lands? He is no longer welcome here.”

“One nipped at Bartholomew’s leg to get him moving but he grabbed for his mate first.

“Come on Ivy!” He tried to order but she moved out of his reach.

“N-no. I don’t want to leave,” she said softly.

“And you do not have to.” Cas put an arm around her and patted her shoulder. “You can stay. Is he your true mate?”

“No, he’s not. He took me with a dowry from my father,” she replied.

“Oh, so your bond can be broken then. Does he treat you with love and respect?” 

She looked nervously at her mate who was surrounded by wolves that were not letting him get close.

“Most of the time…no.”

“Liar!” Bartholomew snarled. Ivy lifted up the edge of her dress just enough so that everyone could see the gash on her leg that was just above her left knee.

“This I received for not getting dinner on the table on time two nights ago.”

“Fuck, Bart! You don’t harm your mate!” Michael snapped angrily.

“Get him out of here,” Cas told the wolves. They growled and this time when he was hesitant to move, one bit him in the leg. He cried out and finally got moving.

“Do you wish to stay mated?” Cas asked Ivy.

“I-I don’t know. I…love him, but he scares me terribly,” she admitted.

“How about this? There is immunity and full equality in Canada. We will send you there until you can decide, or Bart can get his act straight. Let’s give him a few days to cool down and realize how ridiculous he was acting here today. If he doesn’t want to be a responsible, loving mate, then you can apply for sanctuary and sever the bond. Canada will never force you to return to an abusive mate,” Dean told her. She went to him, wrapping her arms around his neck in a tight hug.

“Thank you, Dean. I never thought I’d find a true ally.” 

She turned to Cas and hugged him even tighter. “Thank you, brother. For the first time in years I feel _safe_.”

Dean was already on the phone making arrangements for Ivy. Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last, Cas felt immense pride that this man, this Alpha was _his_ mate. When Dean hung up he wrapped his arms around the man and began purring softly. 

“Babe.” Dean was always in awe of moments like this. He could feel his mate’s contentment. Nothing made him happier.

“Look who I’ve got.” Jo came out with Molly in her arms. Sharon was right behind her with Ellie. The girls got excited the moment they spotted their fathers. Dean took Ellie as Cas took Molly.

“Well don’t you look better,” Cas said as he rubbed his nose against his daughter’s. Molly squealed and clapped her chubby little hands excitedly against his cheeks.

“These are your pups?” Michael asked. The others all stepped closer to see the girls better.

“This is Molly,” Cas said as he turned the pup around to face them. Dean has Ellie.”

“They’re absolutely beautiful,” Rachael said. 

“Were they not feeling well earlier?” Ivy asked.

“They woke up with some kind of virus this morning, but they look good as new now.” Dean kissed his daughter’s cheek before she shoved her hand in his mouth and he pretended to munch on it.

“I bet Reeva fixed them up. They have all sorts of natural remedies to fix pups up. They’re almost never sick here,” Ellen said. 

“I will have to thank her. That…is appropriate, right?” Cas asked his mate.

“Yes. She would be honored to know you appreciated her help.” Dean was trying to avoid both of Ellie’s hands as she tried to shove them in his mouth.

“Can I hold her?” Ivy asked Cas. He smiled and let her take Molly from him. 

“Do you have pups?” he asked. She shook her head.

“No. I wanted pups, but I don’t think Bart would be a good father if they turned out to be anything other than Alpha. We’ve only been mated a few months now.” 

“Well, let’s hope he gets his act straight. Do you live in Lawrence?” 

“Yes, in the Golden District,” she replied.

Dean frowned. He knew about the Golden District. That was where all of the pompous, asshole Alphas that thought they were above the law lived.

“Did you grow up in the Golden District?” he asked his mate.

“Yes. It’s not as golden as one might think,” Cas replied with a heavy sigh. He took Molly back when she began to fuss in Ivy’s arms. The moment he had her back she buried her face in his neck, scenting him.

“You don’t live there, otherwise I’d have seen you.” Ivy said.

“And you’d be correct. I never wanted to live there. We have a nice house about three miles away. Gabe and Sam live about three blocks from us,” Dean told her.

“You couldn’t pay me to go back there. I have a small place with my mate near downtown, and we’re perfectly happy,” Alfie said.

“Well, I love our house.” Cas looked at his mate and smiled. Once, not all that long ago, he had looked at it as though it were Dean’s house and he was simply a guest there, but Dean had quickly made him feel at home, and now he felt it was as much his house as it was Dean’s. The myriad of roses and other flowers growing in the backyard helped a lot towards making it feel like it was his home too.

“I would love to come and visit. Maybe before we return to Houston.” Michael looked between Cas and Dean, both of whom nodded.

“Of course.” Dean told him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, Bartholomew isn't going to be a problem. While he has a similar viewpoint as Luke, he's not Luke, and not quite the same big bag of dicks his older brother is. But as I'm sure you all know, with a monster like their father raising them all to be Omega hating Alphas, some of them would be like him and some would strive to be better people, like Gabe. Like Michael. Like Alfie, even though he's a Beta. 
> 
> Things will get better from here as Sam starts to heal and their pack grows closer. Good things are coming for the Winchester pack. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave me a commnet. :)


	42. Change Has Begun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Sam is in the hospital Gabe comes to stay with his brother and Dean. Life goes on as usual, whether they want it to or not, and when Gabe has to head around the city to accept deliveries, Cas offers to go with him. Their first stop is the new bakery in The District, but when Cas looks in the window of the Omega daycare next door, he gets an idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry about Sam, good things are coming for him and for his mate. He'll be out soon, and he's on the path to healing. I hope you enjoy this chapter. :)

The ride home that night was long and Cas drove it while Dean rode shotgun. He was busy on the phone with Gabe, discussing how Sam was doing. Sharon sat quietly in the backseat with her headphones on, listening to music since the twins were fast asleep. When they reached the house she went to her car and left while they took the pups inside and put them to bed. Once they were alone in their room, Dean started talking.

“Gabe took Sam home. They’re postponing the honeymoon. Sam is checking himself into the hospital tomorrow morning, so Gabe is going to come and stay with us for a few days.”

“Oh, that would be fine. I’ll change the linens on Sam’s old bed in the morning.” Cas was taking off his robes as he listened but he paused to look at his mate. “Will Sam really be ok?”

“I hope so. Gabe said the anxiety meds started wearing off about two hours into the reception, so he gave Sam another dose. He said Sam has only needed to take them maybe three times the entire time they’ve been together, until today. This really set Sammy back. I’m worried about him. Gabe said in forty eight hours I can go and see him, so Tuesday morning I’m going to the hospital.” Dean pulled at the rope belt but the knot wouldn’t come undone. Cas crossed the room and knelt in front of him, gently pushing his hands away so he could work the knot loose.

“You should check on Charlie in the morning as well. I’m sure she is feeling terrible, though she couldn’t possibly have known Sam’s ex was the same Alpha as my brother. I’m worried about her.” He said. Dean nodded as Cas opened the robes for him.

“I’ll call her.”

“Good.” Cas leaned up to kiss his mate. 

“How are you, darling?” Dean asked him. Cas took a moment to mull that question over. How was he, really?

“I’m still rather numb, to be honest. Mostly I am concerned for Sam. I love him very much and I don’t want him to hurt.”

Dean smiled and ran his fingers through his mate’s hair. “Would you like me to teach you the pack traditions and laws? I would like to bring the girls back there regularly, so they can learn and be connected with their roots.”

“I would like that very much. Is Reeva Mordecai’s mate?” Cas asked.

“No. She’s his sister.”

“They do things quickly there. If court was held that quickly out here I believe people would be a lot less likely to commit crimes.” Cas said as he hung both sets of robes in the closet. 

“In the old days, if you committed a crime like what Luke did, you were executed on the spot. There was no council. It would have been seen as though Luke were a threat to the safety of the pack. Elimination of the weak link and all. At least he can’t hurt my brother ever again.” Dean pulled his linen shirt over his head. “Do you think this will affect the campaign?”

“I really don’t know. I know someone will say something. They’ll try to make it seem like Sam being in the hospital is a bad thing, or they’ll try to push Luke’s punishment on you, make it seem like it was your decision. I believe you should call Abby and tell her what happened as well.” Cas went to where his mate was sitting on the edge of the bed and sat down next to him. “I see it like you put your family first, and an aggressive Alpha came and threatened a member of your pack, on pack land. That immediately took it out of your hands. I think educating the general public on pack laws and traditions would be wise too.”

“This political stuff is a nightmare. How do people make lifelong careers out of it?” Dean muttered. 

“I’m proud of you for running a clean campaign and not reacting negatively to things that get said about you, and about us. But I know it’s not easy.” Cas nuzzled against his mate’s neck and purred softly. Dean relaxed and wrapped an arm around his mate.

“I wouldn’t be able to do it without you at my side. I love you, baby. So, so much.” 

“Are you tired?” Cas asked.

“Yes and no. Mostly it’s emotional exhaustion, why?”

Cas moved so that he was straddling his mate.

“Are you too tired to knot me?” He licked at the mating mark on Dean’s neck, smiling to himself when his mate shuddered and let out a groan. Dean’s hands gripped his hips firmly.

“Honey, I’m never too tired for that!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Are you going to work today?” Cas asked his brother. Gabe was sitting across from him at the kitchen table looking grumpy and miserable. It was a huge difference from the Alpha’s normally bubbly nature.

“I have to, we are expecting a huge shipment today. And I have to travel to the other shops in the area. It’s been scheduled for weeks now.” Gabe poked at his eggs and looked over at his niece Ellie who was sitting in the high chair closest to him. She was gnawing on a piece of toast with jelly. He smiled softly at the pup when she noticed him looking and gave him a gummy grin.

“Would you like it if I came with?” Cas asked.

“It’s a long day. You sure the girls can handle that?” Gabe looked over at Molly who was squeezing oatmeal through her fingers and watching it ooze down her hand.

“If you can help me get them cleaned up, they’ll be fine. I’ll bring the double stroller and the carriers. I can help you with whatever you need. Accounting? Inventory? Just point me in the right direction and I’ll help.” Cas was already getting up and picking Molly up.

“We can do lunch at The Roadhouse. I’m sure Ellen would love to see the girls.” Gabe said as he plucked the piece of toast that Ellie was now bashing into the tray of her high chair out of her hand and set it out of her reach. She looked up with wide eyes as he picked her up. She was covered in jelly and crumbs so he held her at arm’s length, his smile growing brighter as her little legs kicked excitedly. He carried her to the sink and grabbed a wash cloth to clean her hands and face up.

“Who’s Uncle Gabe’s precious little cupcake?” He cooed to the pup as he wiped jelly from her forehead. She squealed excitedly and bounced up and down. 

‘I love you, Sugar.” He kissed her forehead gently. “Uncle Sam can’t wait to come home and love on you too.” His distress must have bled through into his scent because suddenly the happy pup pulled back and looked up at him with furrowed brow and pouting lips. She patted his cheek and whined softly.

“It’s ok, Princess. I just miss my Sammy.” He whispered. 

It had been three weeks since the wedding, and Sam was still in the hospital undergoing extensive therapy. He was back on an anti-depressant and they had upped his anxiety meds, but he was doing much better than he had been right after the trial. Gabe went to see him every single day. Being without his mate was painful enough, but to not see him at all would have been excruciating. Dean and Cas went up frequently, and in the afternoons, when he had the time, Cas would take the girls up to see their uncle. They always brought him joy and happiness, and he was glad for that. 

They got the girls cleaned up, diapers changed, and dressed in record time. Cas packed the diaper bag with everything they would need and then they left. Gabe was driving and Cas had made sure the girls were settled in their car seats with their sippy cups. They were just figuring out how to drink from them and Ellie had a better grasp on it than Molly did. Ellie was sucking at hers while Molly was busy looking at the pictures on the cup of cartoon animals.

“I need to stop by my shop in The District. I think we should swing by there first.” Gabe said.

“Ok, sounds good.” Cas agreed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They pulled up in front of the bakery and Gabe got out first to pull the stroller from the trunk. Cas got Ellie out and handed her over so she could be strapped in, and then went around to the other side of the car to get Molly out. While he waited for his brother to secure Molly’s belt, he looked around. This was not the same place he had spent half of his life. Children were playing ball in the streets and people were walking about freely. His eyes went to the store fronts they were standing in front of. Sure, a vast majority of them still stood empty, but they had been at least cleaned up and were waiting for new businesses to come. There was Gabe’s bakery and next door to that was the daycare center. Cas stopped to look in the window. Omegas were playing with the pups, doting on them, and everyone smiled happily. 

“I think perhaps I will see if they have the space to watch the girls for the afternoon while we run around.” He said suddenly. Gabe lifted his head and looked at the daycare window.

“You’re sure?”

“It will be much easier for me to assist you if I don’t have to stop every five minutes to take care of the girls.” Cas replied.

“Ok. Let’s go in and ask then.” Gabe started pushing the stroller towards the daycare door. Cas held it open for him and they went inside.

“Cas!” A dark haired girl that had lived one floor up from him came running over to hug him.

“Hey Tiffany, how have you been?” He asked as he hugged her back.

“I’m good! I got certified! I have a _job_!” She bounced excitedly on her heels. Cas was beyond happy for her. Her mother and father, both Omegas had been forced into prostitution against their will. They had done everything they could to keep their two Omega children out of that line of work. Now their dream was finally coming true.

“That’s wonderful! How do you like working here?” He asked.

“I love it! I love working with pups! I want to go to school and become a teacher like you. Mama says now that’s a real possibility!” 

“That’s right, it is. There are scholarships and many opportunities opening up.” He told her. She spotted the girls in the stroller and knelt down in front of them. Both girls smiled up at her.

“These are your pups?” 

“Yes. My mate is at work today and I’m helping my brother with a couple of his bakeries. I was hoping I could leave the girls here for a few hours, if you’re not too busy.” He replied. Her eyes lit up and she nodded eagerly.

“We have the room! There are two more people coming in this afternoon and then we’ll have lots more help, but I can handle them for now by myself. I handle all the little pups.” 

“What hourly rate was established?” Cas had put an Omega named Ciara in charge of the daycare center. He’d left her to determine the costs.

“Oh, you don’t have to pay. We have this because of you in the first place.” She said.

“Nonsense. I insist. Is twenty an hour alright? I expect that we’ll be gone maybe four to six hours. If we don’t come back to get the pups, my mate will.” 

“That’s more than generous, Cas. And that would be fine. No need for an ID, we know who you and Mr. Winchester both are.” Tiffany grinned before reaching down to unbuckle Ellie from the stroller. The pup eyed the girl as she was lifted into her arms, but then Tiffany nuzzled against her cheek and purred softly. Ellie giggled and kicked her legs happily.

“They’re not walking yet, but they can crawl, and almost never in the same direction at once. I’m still nursing but I packed bottles along with baby food, diapers, and extra clothes for them both. Their blankets are in the bottom of the stroller here too. I hope it’s alright, but because of issues with the media and some not so friendly Alphas that do not like my husband, I will be leaving a security detail here to watch over the girls.” Cas was busy pulling out the diaper bag as he rattled off the information.

“That’s fine. They can play with Henry and Holly. They’re right about their age. It’ll be ok and we’ll see you in a few hours.” She told him.

Cas looked at his brother who smiled and patted his shoulder reassuringly.

“Don’t let them drive you crazy.” Gabe joked. Tiffany grinned at that.

“Oh, I won’t!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be some surprises coming next chapter, but I do hope you enjoyed this one. Brotherly bonding for Cas and Gabe. The girls are getting big, that's for sure! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave a comment if you like.


	43. Parenthood is Exhausting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean is already at the daycare center when Cas and Gabe arrive, and they learn something about one of the pups there.
> 
> Back at home again Cas is struggling with his exhaustion as he puts the girls to bed. Dean decides some changes need to occur at work so that he can spend more time at home with his family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So....I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I know it's going to get some of you excited. Maybe really excited. And to think, you have to wait til Wednesday for the next chapter....
> 
> I'm cruel, I know. But you still love me!

Cas called Dean to tell him where the pups were, and while he wasn’t pleased, he understood why his mate had left their pups in the daycare center. It was a show of good faith towards the Omegas that lived there. Plus Cas was busy. He helped his brother go through the new orders at four different shops and while Gabe got his employees to work together to put everything away, Cas took the time to go over the accounting. By the time they were done for the day Cas had found a way to save his brother roughly two hundred thousand a year plus increase profits. Gabe liked the sound of that, especially with a new house to maintain and Sam’s medical bills. He refused to let Dean cover them. They were also putting money aside for the pups they planned to adopt soon. Sam was still on board for that and they talked about it constantly. He had graduated and Dean had a high paying job waiting for him, working alongside Chuck, so money was not ever going to be an issue. The house was almost finished being properly Omega proofed. That way heats would be contained and their children would be safe. The last step was installing a new alarm system like the one Dean and Cas had. Once everything was in place and Sam was home, they would pick up where they had left off. The first adoption had fallen through when the child’s aunt had claimed him and taken him. Gabe had a bad feeling that she had wanted him for less than honorable reasons, but there was nothing he could do. Sam had been devastated by that, but they had jumped right back into it. Then that fiasco with the wedding had brought everything to a screeching halt. Gabe was so eager to get back to the life he and Sam had, and to keep things moving forward.

Without the pups, Gabe and Cas had skipped lunch. That gave them the extra time they needed to go over the accounting and ordering process, and Dean had called to say he would meet them at the daycare center. It was a little after five when they pulled up behind Dean’s Hummer. They went inside to find Dean laying on the floor with a half dozen pups climbing all over him as he tickled and played with them. It was the most beautiful thing Cas had ever seen. He went and sat down on the floor next to his mate and a beautiful little boy with honey blonde hair and huge hazel eyes toddled over and plopped down in his lap.

“Well hello, sweetheart, how are you?” Cas smoothed a lock of the pup’s hair out of his eyes and the little boy smiled. He really was a beautiful child.

“That’s Henry. He’s so sweet, I don’t know why his mama just up and left him here.” Tiffany said as she walked over.

“What do you mean left him?” Dean rolled onto his side so he could look up at her.

“He’s been here two days. If he’s here another twenty four hours, I have to call social services. His mama got a job at a gas station outside The District, and she works late sometimes, but she always came back for Henry. This time…” Tiffany shrugged. “She just didn’t.”

“So who’s been watching him?” Cas asked.

“Night before last, Ester took him home with her. Tonight, I was going to take him home.” She replied. Dean had his phone out and was dialing a number.

“What’s her name? And what gas station and where?” He inquired.

“BP, three blocks east of The District, on Apache. Her name is Jocelyn Andrews.” She replied.

Dean dialed the number and a moment later he was giving instructions. Cas knew he was sending his own security to check things out.

“I have someone going to check it out and see if his mother can’t be located. They’re very thorough and we’ll know soon enough.” Dean sat up carefully since Molly was using him to stand and pulled his pup into his lap. Gabe sat down next to his brother and began playing with Henry.

“Do you have all that you’ll need to care for him?” Dean hated the idea of the pup being passed around the way he was.

“We’re out of the diapers that came with him, but we have spares here.” She was busy putting toys in a bin when Ellie came over to undo all of her work. Tiffany just smiled and rubbed noses with the pup before putting the toys in the bin once again.

“What time does she have until to show up tonight?” Cas asked.

“We close the center at ten, but there will be someone that stays here until midnight because some parents have to work night shifts. Laws state that Omegas aren’t supposed to work outside of here after eleven. I know some do anyway. Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do in order to survive.” 

Cas knew how true that statement was. He had worked late when he worked for Ellen, but it was out of necessity more than anything. Dean’s phone rang. He had to pry Ellie’s fingers out of his mouth to answer it. Cas listened to Dean’s end of the conversation, frowning at what he was hearing. He looked over at his brother who had a deep look of concern on his face too. When Dean hung up, he sighed deeply. Cas knew the news was not good.

“She’s dead.” He said softly. 

“They found her body?” Gabe asked.

“That murder on the news the other night when the gas station got robbed? That was hers. She was shot and killed. She had no next of kin listed, and no one knew she had a kid.” 

“Fuck, social services needs to be called.” Gabe muttered. “I’ll do it.” He stood up with Henry in his arms and walked a few feet away.

“I know what he’s thinking.” Cas said as he watched his brother.

“Take Henry home?”

“At least temporarily. I guess we’re not going anywhere for a while.” Cas sighed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Within the hour someone showed up from social services and Henry was taken into custody. Gabe got the necessary information for the boy, and before they left for the night, was on the phone with his own lawyer, the one that had been handling the adoption that had fallen through. They all headed back to the house where Dean whipped up a quick dinner while Cas and Gabe cleaned up the mess from breakfast. Charlie showed up and they filled her in on what had happened over dinner. After the girls were fed Cas took them upstairs for their baths while Gabe left to go see Sam. It would be a short visit but Cas knew he was eager to tell him about Henry.

By eight the girls were in bed, quietly lulling themselves to sleep while Cas rejoined his husband and Charlie downstairs. Dinner had been cleaned up and they had moved to the den. He collapsed onto the couch next to Dean with a groan.

“I am so tired. The girls wear me out. I miss coffee.” He pouted. Dean chuckled. 

“I’m sorry, baby. I’ll help more with them.”

“It’s not that. I’m just so blasted tired all the time. I need a nap. Like, a twenty four hour one once a week. I miss Gabe and Sam taking them overnight once a week.” Cas leaned against his husband’s shoulder and Dean wrapped an arm around him. It was only a matter of minutes before Cas was sound asleep next to him. Dean grinned at Charlie who was trying not to laugh. She felt awful for Cas.

“Maybe you should hire a nanny.” She suggested in a whisper.

“No, we decided we don’t want one. I’ll hire more staff to run the shops so I can spend more time at home with my family, where I belong. Can you get the ball rolling on that? Hire a couple of people to go around doing the inspections? I’ll still run things from my end here at the house. Don’t want anyone thinking I’m slacking.”

She nodded. “Sure thing. Have you, uh, been back? You know, to see what the elders finally decided on?”

Dean’s grin faded as his expression turned grim. “No, not yet. Mordecai told me to wait at least a month. And I’m more worried about my brother’s state of mind than whether they ripped out Luke’s tongue for being an insolent asshole.”

“I watched the press conference you held. Good job of putting a lid on those rumors before they could get out of control. Too bad you have another asshole brother in law though.” She said.

“The way they grew up? I’m honestly surprised that all the Alphas are complete dicks. Mike is ok, and Gabe is ok. I hope I never meet their father.” The flash of anger he felt caused Cas to wake with a start.

“What happened?” He cried as he struggled to sit up.

“Shh, that was my fault. I’m sorry. Come here.” Dean pulled his mate back against him and Cas went without contest. A moment later his eyes were sliding shut again.

“Smooth move there, Ex-Lax.” Charlie teased. Dean flipped her off with a grin.

“Yeah, I know. I try not to do stuff like that. Sometimes, like when I think of how he was raised, I can’t help it. It’s something that’s always going to tick me off. You see how wonderful and amazing he is, and to think his own parents would just kick him out like they did…” Dean was struggling to keep his anger under control. It shifted, turning to a fierce need to protect his mate which apparently wasn’t any better for Cas because he woke for a second time, reaching over to pat Dean’s leg.

“M ok, Dean. I’m not hurt.” He murmured. Dean smiled and kissed his mate’s forehead gently as Cas drifted off again.

“You guys are sweet. I’m going to get going so you can take him up to bed. I’m sure he wants some alone time with you, he hasn’t seen much of you today.” She stood up. “I’ll get Zeke to let me out. I’ll talk to you later, and I’ll let you know about the potential prospects once I put the word out.” Charlie said as she got up. She smiled fondly at Cas before she left. Dean heard the front door open and close. He lifted Cas into his arms and his husband gasped. His blue eyes flew open, coming to focus on Dean’s face.

“What are you doing?” 

“You can’t stay awake, love. I’m taking you to bed.” Dean strode out of the den and to the stairs that led to the second floor. Cas leaned in to him and closed his eyes. He liked the feeling of being in Dean’s arms, even if it was a relatively short trip. 

Dean opened the bedroom door and flipped on the light switch before depositing Cas on the bed.

“Are you coming to bed?” Cas propped himself up on his elbows and looked up at him. 

“Yeah, I’m just grabbing us some pajamas.” Dean pulled out a pair of his own sleep pants, and then found a pair of Cas’. He tossed those to his mate and began to strip down for bed. He put on his pajama pants and collected his and Cas’ clothes, carrying them to the laundry room. When he came back, the bedroom was empty.

“Cas?”

“In here.” Cas called back from the bathroom.

Dean found his mate standing in front of the mirror looking at his own reflection.

“Are you ok?” He asked.

“I figured out why I’m so tired.” Cas turned to look at his husband. Dean had a sinking feeling he knew too. When Cas held out the little white stick, he knew.

“You’re pregnant.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how many of you are squealing excitedly? And are you torn as to who you're more excited about? Well, there will be more details next chapter. For now, be happy for them both. Don't worry, Cas and Dean are not upset. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Leave a comment if you like. :)


	44. The Family Grows Bigger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean is afraid Cas will be upset with him over getting pregnant again so soon, but Cas is quick to ease his mate's fears. They're a team and they can get through this together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy the chapter.

“I didn’t think…” Cas shook his head. “When did we do it without a condom?”

Dean was trying to remember. He’d been careful. Cas hadn’t wanted to get pregnant again this soon.

“I can’t recall. I’m so sorry, sweetheart.” 

Cas could immediately feel the fear and worry his mate was experiencing. He turned to Dean and took his face between his hands.

“No, honey, don’t worry. I’m not upset. I’m happy.”

“You don’t seem happy.” There was a little furrow between his eyebrows that Cas stroked a thumb over until it had disappeared.

“I’m a bit in shock but trust me, I’m happy. I’m just a bit scared there’s more than one in here.” Cas brought a hand down to cover his belly. He wondered how far along he was already.

“You’re not mad at me?” Dean was worried his mate would be upset with him over this.

“No, darling, I’m not upset with you. But we’re really going to have our work cut out with this many babies. It doesn’t look like I’ll be going back to work next year.” That was the part Cas was most upset about.

“Yes you can, if that’s what you want. Look, we’ll figure this out, ok? I can be mayor and I can spend the necessary time with my kids. We’re a team, we can do this together.” Dean kissed his mate gently.

“Do you need me to get you anything?” 

“No, I’m exhausted, I just want to go to bed. Tomorrow though, we need to make an appointment to go see Doctor Sanders.” Cas yawned. 

“Alright. I’m just going to brush my teeth and then we’ll go to sleep.” Dean said. Cas smiled.

“I love you, Dean.”

Dean smiled back. “I love you too.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Sam is coming home today.” Gabe said. His excitement was almost palpable. Cas smiled. He was excited too.

“Good! Voluntary discharge?”

“Yes. We’re going down to talk to our lawyer. Social services has already tested Henry. He’s a Beta. They searched for any other living relatives but apparently his mother was one of the former prostitutes that lived in The District, and she got pregnant by one of her Johns. She was left to The District by her mother, a Beta that has since passed away when she was sixteen and there is no other family that can be tracked down, so Henry will go up for adoption.” Gabe was almost giddy.

“So…you and Sam, you want to adopt him?” Cas was happy for his brother and brother in law. 

“Sam wants to meet him first. We’re going down tomorrow so he can meet him.” Gabe replied. They were enjoying breakfast with the girls and Ellie was chomping down on her soggy Cheerios while Molly was accepting bites of food from her father. Dean walked in the room in time to see Ellie turn her cereal bowl over.

“Oh come on, princess!” He groaned.

“Sorry, Molly doesn’t want to eat on her own this morning.” Cas said. 

“I should have stopped her, I wasn’t looking.” Gabe reached over to grab the bowl. Dean arrived with a wet wash cloth and cleaned up the cereal as best as he could.

“It’s ok. They’re always spilling something. It’s what kids do.” Dean went to rinse the wash cloth before coming back to finish cleaning up the rest of the mess. Ellie squealed happily as he did. 

“Did you make the appointment?” Cas asked. 

“Yeah, tomorrow at two.” Dean replied.

“Appointment? Is it for the girls?” Gabe looked between his brother and brother in law.

“Uh, no. It’s for me. It looks like I’m pregnant again.” Cas chuckled at the look of shock on his brother’s face. Suddenly Gabe leaned over and scented him.

“Shit, you are! I thought you guys were using protection!”

“We were! It might have been during my last heat. I know I was too out of it to pay attention.” Cas looked up at Dean who looked ashamed.

“I can’t remember. I thought I used one every time but I just can’t remember.”

“Wow, so we’re going to have another little Winchester. This is good news, right guys? Sam and I will help you, I promise. We’re a pack, we’ll do everything we can to make things easy on you guys.” Gabe hugged his brother and then turned to hug Dean.

“Thanks, we’re going to need it, especially if I win this campaign. I can put off work with the shops, but I have to be present, front and center at city hall. It’s going to be a fine balance, but we can do it.” Dean said. He took a deep breath. “What time does Sammy get out?”

Gabe checked his watch. “I have to pick him up in an hour.”

“Good. You bringing him home or are you guys coming here?” Dean asked.

“I will let you know.”

“That’s fine. I’ll fire up the grill and if you guys come back, we’ll all eat together.” Dean did a mental inventory of what he had in the fridge. He’d have to run to the store.

“Alright, I’m going to get going, there’s paperwork to fill out for Sam’s discharge, I’m sure. I’ll call you later.” Gabe stopped to kiss each of his nieces before heading for the door.

“Where are the dogs?” Dean asked once Gabe was gone. He sat down in the empty seat.

“In the yard. I was thinking of bringing the girls out there, to get some sunshine and play in the grass.” Cas replied.

“Wait til I get back from the store, ok? Then we’ll take them outside together.” Dean unbuckled Ellie from her seat and picked her up. She giggled as she kicked her little legs excitedly. Cas tried to spoon one more bite of cereal into Molly’s mouth but she turned her head away. She was done so he took her out of her high chair.

“You won’t be gone long, will you?” Cas found one of the walkers that Ellen had given them as a gift and set Molly into it. Immediately she began scooting across the floor as she followed Dean.

“Where’s the other one?” Dean was asking.

“Uh, den, I think?” Cas said as he began wiping out the high chairs.

Dean left with Molly following and when he returned both girls were scooting after him, bouncing off one another and laughing. He was grinning like an idiot.

“They’re getting really good in these things.”

“I think they’ll both be walking very soon.” Cas was sort of dreading that. His little girls were getting big fast. Dean walked over and placed a hand gently against his mate’s belly as he leaned in to scent him. There was definitely a change. It was more of a deepening of Cas’ normal scent, but it was noticeable. There was already a slight swell to his belly too. 

“Think we have a boy this time?” Dean asked.

“I hope so, but I’d be just as happy with a girl.” Cas leaned into his mate, letting the feeling of contentment that he always felt at being in his Alpha’s arms wash over him.

“Me too. Guess we have to think up a few more names, huh.”

“I’m sticking with Aidan for a boy.” Cas said.

“And what if…”

“Don’t. I don’t even want to think about that yet.” Cas shook his head. He was hoping there was only one pup in there this time. Dean rubbed his mate’s belly gently.

“We have to get the girls on to formula.”

“I know. They’re already dropping their feedings. I’ve been supplementing with formula the last couple of days and they’re taking to it quite well.” Cas said. “I think they knew before I knew.”

Dean stood a while longer just rubbing his mate’s belly and wondering what this new pup would be like. No doubt it would be beautiful, his daughters were the most beautiful children he’d ever seen (though he acknowledged the fact that he might be a bit bias), but personality wise, what would it be like? Would it be feisty like him? Calm like Cas? Would it be a bookworm like Sam? What if it had a penchant for jokes and candy like Gabe? Molly was already proving to like sweet things like her uncle. She loved when he would let her lick at a lollipop. As he contemplated these things tiny hands grabbed at his pants and little walkers continued to smash into his legs. He was very glad that he was already wearing his boots or his toes would be suffering.

“Are you feeling horny yet?” He asked. Cas seemed surprised by the question.

“Maybe? It’s not as bad as it was with the girls though. It’s like a constant energy thrumming just under the surface, but it’s bearable.” 

“Mmm, maybe we are having a boy then.” Dean carefully dropped to his knees and lifted his mate’s shirt so he could kiss the tiny bump. Cas purred contentedly as he ran his fingers through his mate’s hair. Dean doting on him made him feel safe and loved.

“Get going. I would like cheeseburgers, with bacon, and if you buy a bag of potatoes, I can either bake them or use this new recipe I found that sounds good. It has cheese and powdered ranch, and pieces of bacon.” Cas told him.

“Are you craving bacon, sweetheart?” Dean asked as he got to his feet.

Cas thought for a moment. “I think I’m just craving meat in general, but bacon sounds really good right now.”

“I’ll stock up and we can freeze it. Anything else that you would like while I’m out?”

Cas took the pad off the fridge and jotted down a quick grocery list.

“Oh, and could you check the pup department and see if they have any kind of teething rings that can be frozen and given to the girls? Ellie is cutting two more teeth and she’s been using me as her personal chew toy.” 

Dean winced thinking about that. Ouch!

“Of course. I’ll be back in about an hour, maybe two.” He kissed his mate’s forehead before leaning down to plant a kiss to each of his pups.

“You be good for your papa. Daddy will be home soon.”

Ellie blew a spit bubble in response while Molly smacked the tray on the walker excitedly. He smiled at them. God he loved being a father.

“Ok, come on girls, let’s go watch a movie.” Cas said to his pups, drawing their attention as Dean left. If he could put up the pup gate and contain them in the den with a cartoon, it would give him a little time to rest. He needed it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They're hoping for a single pup this time. What are your bets?


	45. Uncle Sam is Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam is home and eager to spend time with his nieces. Dean takes Cas to the doctor where they're ready to see how the pregnancy is going, and to see how many pups they have in there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keep in mind, I have plans, people. Everything I do with this story, I do it for a reason. So keep that in mind as you read this chapter...

“How are my sweet girls? I missed you so much.” Sam cooed to his nieces. He was sitting on the couch and they were crawling all over him excitedly. Ellie used his hair to pull herself to a standing position, and then she was gnawing on his chin. He laughed and stroked his fingers through her hair.

“I think they missed you too.” Cas said with a laugh.

“I thought about them constantly. I couldn’t wait to get out and come see them.” Sam grabbed Ellie’s face gently and blew a raspberry against her cheek, causing the pup to erupt in excited giggles. Molly was in his lap gnawing on her own fingers as she played with her toes. “I can’t believe how big they’re getting.”

“Did Gabe tell you the news?” Cas asked. Sam looked up at him and shook his head.

“News about what? Henry?”

“No. I’m pregnant.” Cas’ hand instinctively found its way to his belly. 

“No way! Really? That’s fantastic news! How is Dean taking it?”

Cas chuckled. “He can’t stop rubbing my belly and kissing it. He’s back in a heightened state of protective mode.”

Sam grinned. “Sounds like Dean. Do you think it’s a boy this time?”

Cas shrugged. “This pregnancy is already going differently, but from what I’ve read, that doesn’t necessarily mean anything. Dean says I smell like honey, but that it’s more intense now. Not sweet like the strawberry cupcake scent I had with the girls, and I’m not craving fruit, I’m craving meat. I’m already tired all the time though.”

Sam took a good look at his brother in law. There were dark circles under the man’s eyes and he looked exhausted.

“Do you need a nap? I’ll gladly watch the girls so you can get some rest.”

“No, Dean needs help making dinner. I said I’d make the potatoes.” Cas sighed.

“Why don’t you go and prep them and I’ll cook them. Then go lay down until dinner’s done.” Sam suggested.

“You really don’t mind? I don’t want to impose, you just got home…” 

Sam waved him off. “I _want_ to spend time with my nieces. I need it. While I needed the time in the hospital to decompress and come to terms with everything, I was anxious to get back to my mate, and to the pack. I’m happy to be here, and to spend time with everyone. Gabe and I decided we’ll stay here for a couple of days, and I’ll help you out. Hopefully soon we’ll have our own pup, and then the girls will have a cousin to grow up and play with.”

Cas loved that idea. “I hope all goes well with the adoption. You’ll love Henry, he’s a beautiful child, and so incredibly sweet. He and I share a birthday too, so he just turned a year.”

“I hadn’t realized you guys had the same birthday. That’s awesome.” 

Cas got up from the couch and stretched. “I’ll go make the potatoes now.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By the time Sam had put the girls in their walkers and headed out to the kitchen with them both chasing after, Dean was there, cooking the bacon for the burgers that were on the grill being monitored by Gabe. Dean looked up, smiling at his brother.

“The girls driving you nuts yet?” He asked.

“Never, they’re wonderful. Even if they’re using me as their own personal chew toy.” Sam laughed.

Dean grinned and nodded. “Yeah, they’re teething. Little canines are coming in now. Looks like one of them left a mark on your chin.” He pointed at the spot where Ellie had been chewing a few minutes earlier. Sam touched the spot, grimacing at the saliva still there. He wiped it away.

“Eh, they’re worth it.”

“Dada!” Ellie cried as she slammed into the back of Dean’s legs with her walker.

“So Cas is pregnant, huh?” Sam knew they’d wanted to wait, but maybe the timing would work out well. The girls and their little brother or sister would get to grow up together, and with Henry if they were able to adopt him.

“Yes. I’m excited, even if it doesn’t seem that way. I love being a dad, and I love Cas pregnant. Don’t tell him that though, he hates it, thinks he looks fat. I think he looks even more gorgeous.” Dean wondered just how big his pup would get this time, and how big Cas would get.

“When do you plan to tell the media?” Sam asked. Dean sighed and flipped the rest of the bacon before responding.

“Tomorrow is the appointment to get Cas checked out. From there, I think I want to wait until he’s really showing and we can’t hide it any more. Elections are in November. I have to talk to Abby but I think it could boost our popularity. Show that we’re a happy, healthy family unit.”

“It could. Just to play devil’s advocate though, it could make society think he’s just pumping out pups because that’s what Omegas do. I would have Cas speak up about it, quell any rumors or negative theories as to why, after only six months, your mate is pregnant again. Let the world know that you always wanted a big family, and that you have the means both monetarily and emotionally to support your family, and let them know that you are an active participant in raising your pups. Take the girls out places, like shopping or to the park. Plus, Cas will much appreciate the quiet and time to rest. He’s going to need it. Did you see the circles under his eyes? He’s exhausted. I sent him to bed for a nap.” Sam said.

“Yeah, I have Charlie hiring more people on to do the inspections, and I’m working from home. Possibly permanently. My family needs me. Once I’m mayor I’ll work something out so that I can either have my pups there at the office with me, or I can work right from home. Cas wanted to go back to work and he thinks that now he can’t. I don’t want to take away his dreams just because I want a big family.”

“We’re a pack, Dean. Gabe and I are ready and willing to help, even with our own pups. We know you feel the same and will help us with raising ours too. If Cas wants to go back to work, we’ll find a way to make that happen.” A thought suddenly occurred to Sam. “I have an idea.”

Dean turned the stove off and moved the pan of bacon off the hot burner before turning to look at his brother. “What is it?”

“Cas works at an Omega high school right? And you want to create job skills for the kids, so that they don’t think the only thing they are good for is pumping out pups. So what if you incorporate a child care course, so the kids are actually caring for pups from the neighborhood. It would be a low cost daycare that would teach the students invaluable skills and help some of them decide on what career path they want to take. And, it could perhaps earn them credits towards getting certified to work at the Omega daycare or any daycare. Then, Cas can work and his pups will be right there in the school with him. When he goes home for the day, the pups go with him. I’m sure you could find a teacher qualified to teach the class. Do it for juniors and seniors, but make it so that they can only take the course if they’re maintaining a B or higher average. Make them strive to keep their grades up so that they can earn attention from colleges. Let them see that they have a future and that they are invaluable.”

Dean could feel his excitement building. He loved that idea!

“That’s fantastic, Sammy! I want you to run that by Cas when he wakes up, and if he’s on board with it I’ll call the school board and see if we can’t get that plan in gear. I’ll get the heating system fixed at the school, and get it up to code so they’re more likely to agree to it. I think putting the girls, and our new pup in school will do them a world of good. They’ll learn to socialize, make friends, and knowing Cas, they’ll be speaking multiple languages, reading and writing by the time they’re four.”

Sam had to laugh at that. He knew Cas well enough to know that was true.

“And if we are allowed to adopt Henry, we’ll put him in school there too. He’d like to go to school with his cousins, I would think.”

Dean surprised his brother by pulling him into a tight hug. “You’ll get Henry, I know it. He deserves loving parents, and I know you and Gabe will pour so much love into him that he’ll overflow with it. I can’t wait to get to know my nephew.”

Sam choked up as he hugged his brother back. “I hope you’re right. I want this so bad, Dean. I never thought I would, but I do. I want to be a father, and I want to share that with Gabe. I haven’t even met this pup yet and I want him.”

Dean gave his brother one last squeeze before letting him go. “Did you see pictures? He’s truly a beautiful child. Looks like he could be Gabe’s.”

Sam wiped a stray tear as it slid down his cheek and nodded. “I did. I can’t wait to meet him tomorrow. Apparently he really likes Gabe. I hope he likes me too.”

“He’s going to love you, little brother. Just you wait and see.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas sat on the exam table in his gown, waiting for Doctor Sanders to come in. Cassie had been surprised to hear he was pregnant again, but she was happy for him. Dean was sitting in the chair next to him, scrolling through the news on his phone.

“Oh geez…” 

“What?” Cas asked. Dean held up his phone so Cas could see the article.

_‘Billionaire Mayoral Candidate Dean Winchester Seen Grocery Shopping at Local Store’_

“And what is the big deal about that?” 

Dean took the phone back and scanned over the article.

“Apparently they’re surprised that I would be doing such a domestic task because I’m an Alpha, but mostly because I’m wealthy. They expect that we have maids and butlers and nannies. We’ll have to set them straight.”

“It’s nonsense. We’re regular people.” Cas grumbled.

“I agree, and I’ve always taken care of things. That way I know they get done the way I want them done. I can turn my own laundry pink, thank you very much. I don’t need a maid to do it for me.” Dean groused. Cas snorted. He knew his mate was referring to an accident a few weeks earlier when Dean accidentally threw a red sleeper in with the lights, not realizing the color would bleed. Now the girls had pink diapers, pink sleepers, and pink blankets. The Alpha was still kicking himself for that one.

“What are we going to do about sleeping arrangements?” Cas asked.

“Not for a long time. When they start grumbling about needing their own space, we’ll put one in another bedroom. I was thinking of expanding the attic, making more rooms up there. What do you think?”

“How many pups do you want?” Cas laughed.

“I’ve always said, no more than you are willing to have, but you know I want a big family.” Dean reached out to take his mate’s hand, bringing it to his lips for a tender kiss.

Cas knew how much his mate wanted a house full of kids. After his nap the day before, Sam had made his suggestion about the in school daycare, and the idea had excited him. It was a way for him to be close to his pups and still work. He was eager for Dean to call the school board and get things moving so they could incorporate it. If they got the mold cleaned up and all of the heating and plumbing repaired, he knew what rooms would work perfectly for the daycare. 

“I want to go back to school.” He blurted. Dean looked up at him, mildly surprised by the sudden change of topic.

“That’s good. Anything you want to further your education on, I will pay it in full.”

Cas smiled at his mate. Dean was amazing. “I think I want to get certified to teach the students that will work in the daycare, to get the ball rolling. That way they aren’t struggling to find a teacher. They’ll already have me. From there, we can perhaps offer scholarships so that others might go and get their teaching degrees, and certified to handle the pups in the daycare. I already have the teaching degree part, but I need the certification. I can earn it in a few months while I’m waiting for this pup to get here.”

“That’s brilliant, and you could probably do it at the community college, or right from home.” Dean said.

“I think I would prefer to do it from home, especially with my current state of near constant exhaustion. I would feel silly if I fell asleep in class.” 

The door opened and Doctor Sanders walked in. “Hello, boys, how are you today?” She asked as she shook their hands.

“We’re doing well, thank you for asking.” Cas said, politely.

“Good, good. Now what’s this I hear about you being pregnant again?” There was a playful tone to her voice as she opened up Cas’ chart. It made both of them smile.

“Yes, I am. I’ve been very tired lately, more than what is normal in dealing with pups, so on a whim I took a pregnancy test a few days ago. It came back positive. Dean can smell it on me, so can my brother, and I already have a bump.” Cas placed a hand over his belly as he spoke. Her eyes followed the movement.

“Well, let’s see if can figure out how far along you are, alright?” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Within ten minutes they learned that Cas was approximately two months along, which was in perfect timing with his last heat. They were given the due date of April 4th. Cas was glad he wouldn’t be having this one in the dead of winter like he did the girls. He laid back and waited as Doctor Sanders got the ultrasound machine ready. Dean was holding his hand as they watched the doctor smear the clear jelly on the wand and lower it to Cas’ belly.

“You say this one took place while you were in heat?” She asked.

“Yes.” Cas replied.

“Well, I’m betting from the fact you already have a bump that we’re looking at another case of multiples then. Remember what I told you about true mates and heats?”

Cas sighed and nodded. “We were being careful. Apparently we weren’t careful enough.”

“But we’re happy. We want this one.” Dean added quickly. Cas looked over at his mate.

“Honey, I’ll always want your pups. Don’t ever doubt that. This one is not a mistake, ok? I want it as much as you do. I’m happy, really. I’m just tired. Being pregnant does that to a person.”

Dean kissed his mate’s hand again, more for his own reassurance. “Yeah, ok. I just don’t want you resenting me later.”

“As if I could.” Cas scoffed. Dean grinned and pressed his mate’s hand to his cheek. Cas knew he needed the physical contact and proof his Omega wasn’t angry with him.

“Well…” Doctor Sanders found a heartbeat and focused on it. “We’re on the money about it being two months along.” She moved the wand around some more after taking the necessary measurements. It didn’t take long before she found a second heartbeat. “And…we have another.”

Dean squeezed his mate’s hand tighter. Cas could feel him trembling. 

“Dean, it’s ok. I could have ten in there and it will be _ok_. I want them, and I have no regrets. As long as you keep your promise to me that none will ever be rejected because of their orientation, I will want every single one of them.”

“We have another one.” Doctor Sanders announced.

Holy shit, triplets?! 

Cas’ eyes widened. “Three?”

“Here’s another one, but this one is very small.” She frowned as she took the pup’s measurements.

“Four. We’re having four more pups.” Cas was numb with shock, but…he was happy too. He could feel his mate’s shock too, but there was excitement simmering underneath it. “I think we need to move, Dean. We need a bigger house.”

“No, you like our house, right? The yard is huge for our kids, and I can buy more property if that’s the problem.” Dean loved that house and didn’t want to move unless he absolutely had to.

“I love the house, but six kids? I know it’s a six bedroom house, but that’s pushing things, especially if Gabe and Sam are over as much as I think they will be with Henry. So that’s eleven people trying to fit. I love our pack, but I might very well lose my mind with that many people underfoot. And the girls will never get their own rooms now.”

“Let me work on that, ok? If I can manage to make extra rooms, do you want to stay?” Dean asked him.

“Of course. It’s home to me. I feel safe there.”

Dean stood up and kissed his husband. “Then I’ll make it big enough for all of us.”

“So, the verdict is four. I don’t see any others hiding in there. I guess this will teach you two about heat sex.” Doctor Sanders teased. Dean blushed and Cas laughed.

“I’ll make him wear two condoms.” Cas laughed harder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before panties get twisted, remember, they wanted a big family, they have the pack to help them, they have the money to care for as many pups as they want, and I have plans for these pups. There is a method to my madness, and Cas will be alright. So don't hate me too much!


	46. Dousing the Rumor Mill Flames Before They Can Really Get Going

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Cas take on the media in yet another press conference before potentially destructive rumors can hurt Dean's mayoral campaign. They spend time with the family as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope you like this chapter. I am sorry it's getting put up late, I was so busy today and I forgot it was Wednesday. But enjoy!

“Well? Tell me the good word.” Gabe urged.

“I’m definitely pregnant, and we’re going to need to add on to the house.” Cas replied.

Sam’s jaw dropped from where he was sitting across the table.

“How many more?”

“Four.” Dean replied. He was sitting next to Cas, one arm draped over the back of his husband’s chair. He smirked at Gabe when he saw the man’s jaw drop.

“Holy shit! _Four pups_?!”

“That was pretty much my reaction too.” Cas now knew why he had a good sized bump for only being two months along. “My breasts are going to be huge this time.” He whined.

“I love your breasts when they’re full. You’re even more beautiful.” Dean said as he nuzzled against his mate’s neck. Cas frowned but didn’t push him away. Dean would have tried caressing said breasts if his brother and brother in law weren’t sitting there watching them. He was dying to get his hands on his mate but he didn’t want an audience.

“And they’re all healthy?” Sam asked.

“Yes. One is very small. I’m worried about that one.” Cas admitted. He laid a hand over his bump. He was very worried about that pup.

“Got your work cut out for you figuring out names.” Gabe huffed out a small laugh and shook his head. He knew the work that went into caring for the twins. It would be twice as hard with quadruplets. Damn, his brother was having a whole _litter_.

“We are definitely naming one Aidan.” Cas said firmly. Dean smiled. Cas was positive at least one was a boy this time.

“You’re going to pop soon and it won’t be easy to hide after that. You should call Abby and let her know so you can do a press conference.” Sam looked at Dean who nodded. His brother was right. They needed to address this before Cas was waddling about. With all of the events they had to make appearances at between now and the election, someone was bound to notice.

“I’ll call her Monday. Tell me, how did the meeting with Henry go? Are they allowing your petition for adoption?” Dean asked.

Sam’s face lit up at the mention of the pup that had, in a matter of a few minutes managed to completely steal his heart.

“They are allowing it. And we’re the only ones currently interested, and since we put ours in first, we’re likely to get approved within the next two months. We’re getting a trial period where we get to take Henry home and let him adjust to living with us. There will be random home visits to make sure everything is going well, and then they will sign off on it and we get to make it permanent. He really is an amazing pup, so smart and so incredibly sweet. I was holding him and he kept burying his nose in my neck to scent me. He smelled so happy and so content.” Sam looked at his mate who was practically beaming next to him. “We’ve already chosen a bedroom for him, and chosen a decorator. The room is being done tomorrow.” 

“I’m so happy for you both. I look forward to Henry joining the pack.” Cas was so excited for them both.

“Are you keeping the name Henry? It’s sort of ironic since it’s already a family name. Grandpa Winchester’s first name was Henry.” Dean hoped they kept the child’s name.

“We’re definitely keeping his name. It’s the name his mother gave him, and we don’t want to take that away from him. But we’re adding on the middle name Robert. So he’ll be Henry Robert Winchester.” Gabe explained.

“I love that.” Cas looked at Dean who nodded in agreement.

“When will the trial period start?” Dean asked.

“He’s coming Sunday night. In the meantime we’ve left him something with our scents, so he can grow more accustom to them. The social worker said it will help with his adjustment and acceptance of us. We already bought furniture.” Sam blushed as he admitted this. 

“Of course you did. They want Henry to get placed quickly because it’s best for him to have a sense of normalcy, and to have that chance to bond with his new parents, and that makes it so that you have to do everything in fast forward. Do you need anything for him? Will you use cloth diapers for him too? We have some new ones we could give you.” Cas offered. “I’m going shopping tomorrow to buy him outfits.”

Everyone at the table chuckled at his enthusiasm.

“We haven’t gotten to buy much in the way of clothing yet, so that will be appreciated.” Gabe said.

“Oh, I’m going to buy him sleepers and jumpers and…”

Dean smiled at his mate as he listened to him rattle off all the things he wanted to buy for the pup that would soon be their nephew.

“I’m going to bring him and the girls down to the shop when they’re old enough, and start teaching them how to work on cars.” 

“Good, maybe he’ll grow to love it like you do.” Sam said.

“I sure hope one of them takes after me and is passionate about cars.” It looked like with at least his own six pups and however many Sam and Gabe had, _someone_ was bound to love working on cars.

The next few weeks were hectic. Dean was on the phone constantly with either Abby, Chuck, or Charlie, and Cas was busy helping his brother and Sam with getting Henry settled. The pup was scared the first week in the new house and Sam spent many nights sitting up in the rocking chair with the pup cradled in his arms as he tried to console the boy. It was exhausting, but soon the pup began to adjust, and they established a routine with him. He was bonding with both Gabe and Sam, and they were falling in love with him. 

The press conference, when they got around to it, was done two weeks before the election. Cas had already popped by that point and there was no chance of hiding it. Dean spoke first, making the announcement since the simple act of Cas stepping out on the stage would have alerted everyone to the reason behind _why_ they were calling a sudden press conference. Once the announcement was made, he called his mate out to the stage. The cacophony of voices that were already at a dull roar increased tenfold once everyone got a look at the Omega and his swollen belly. He joined Dean, linking their hands together as he waited for the questions to die down so they could tackle answering them one at a time. Dean pointed to someone in the front row.

“When is the due date?”

Of course that would be the first question. They wanted to fuel the fans of speculation. Dean turned to his mate.

“You want to answer this one or should I?”

“I’ve got this.” Cas told him. He turned to look at the reporter.

“First, let me say we are expecting multiples and that is why I am as big as I am already. The due date is April fourth, but we expect that the pups will come early. We will _not_ give out the number of pups that I am carrying.”

Several hands dropped at that. Of course they wanted to know how many he was carrying. He pointed to someone in the middle that was waving their hand excitedly.

“Was this a planned pregnancy?”

Cas patted his mate’s hand to let him know he had this question as well.

“Dean and I decided early on that we wanted a big family and while we did not expect to get pregnant again this soon, we are excited and thrilled to become parents again. These pups will be wanted and loved, and no, we will _not_ be getting them tested. The orientation of our pups does not matter to us. We will raise everyone equally and love them all the same.”

Dean was impressed with his mate’s ability to circumvent questions before they could even be asked, and answer them in a way that meant no further information on that topic would be given. He selected the next question.

“How do you think it will affect you having so many pups if you win the election?”

“If you’re asking me do I see parenthood as something that will get in the way of my abilities to be mayor, absolutely not. My husband and I, we work together as a team but more important than that, we are part of a loving pack that work together to raise the pups. We do not hire nannies on a regular basis and we do not have staff to clean or run errands. We believe in doing everything ourselves, to teach our children the importance of family and to teach them work ethics. This city is our home, and our family as well. As your mayor I will do everything within my power to take care of my family, and to teach my children the value of taking care of their home. I want to teach them, and our future generations how to work together to make this city the best it can possibly be.”

Cas squeezed his husband’s hand and smiled. Dean wasn’t always the most eloquent speaker, but he was passionate and people responded to that passion. When the girls were carried out on stage and handed over, the questions began to buzz again. They wanted to know what plans they had for the girls education, whether they were given everything they wanted (To which the crowd received a very dry _“They’re babies, what could they possibly want besides food and cuddles?”_ ), and what plans they had for their pups’ future. They took turns answering the questions. They discussed plans for the school daycare, and for the daycare in The District, what needs their pups had regarding food and comfort, how quickly the girls were growing, and what measures they were taking to not contribute to the growing waste that humans continued to produce. Cas spoke proudly of nursing and glass bottles, of cloth diapers and homemade soaps. He explained their plans to reuse clothes and of mishaps they had experienced as parents. He knew the city was watching, and even beyond that, and he wanted to emphasize that he and Dean were just like everyone else. It appealed better to the masses when they appeared to be the regular folks that they were, and proved that they were not infallible. Dean’s laundry mishap, Cas’ dropping an entire bag of baby food jars he had just canned on the floor and shattering them all, it came across as very human mistakes, and when Ellie started gnawing on Dean’s chin, they heard the soft snickers from the crowd. 

“She’s getting in her canines.” Cas explained, and they could hear the murmured “Awwws” rippling across the room.

When the conference was over, they made the drive to The Roadhouse for lunch. People came over to introduce themselves and ask questions of their own, but mostly they wanted to congratulate them on their new pups and to let Dean know he had their vote. The primaries had been promising. He had won by a landslide over his other Omega rights running mate, but now that it was down to him and Dick Roman, an Alpha that absolutely did not share Dean’s views towards Omegas and Betas, the race was closer. Dick was promising to keep things exactly the same, and to halt changes in The District. It was an empty promise since regardless of who won, Dean would continue to improve the area. Even if he didn’t have the mayor’s backing, he had the governor’s and now both senators. He didn’t need Dick Roman’s approval when he could go right over the jerk’s head. The easiest way to circumvent the man whose name most definitely suited him was to win. Right now he was pulling ahead. He just needed to maintain his current rating. 

Ellen came and shooed people away so they could eat in peace. Sam, Gabe, and Henry came to join them, and Henry tried to feed Molly fries while constantly murmuring to her that they were “nummy”. Cas thought it was the most endearing thing he had ever seen. They enjoyed lunch and Dean entertained Henry and Molly while Gabe fed Ellie and Sam talked with Cas. Henry loved to be tickled, as did Molly, and he alternated tickling the two of them until they were both worn out. They fell asleep in his arms while everyone else enjoyed dessert. Cas gave Ellie a bottle and she fell asleep drinking it while feeding bites of pie to Dean. Gabe offered to take Henry back, but Dean was enjoying the time to bond with his nephew, and Gabe didn’t begrudge him that. Instead, he took Molly, cradling the sleeping pup in his arms as he watched her sleep.

“God she’s so beautiful.” He murmured softly. Sam smiled and leaned closer, putting his arm around his mate’s shoulder.

“She really is. She’s changing again. Look how much she looks like Dean now.” He pointed to her little nose and the long lashes. “We’ll be beating back suitors later because she’ll have so many.”

Dean grinned. “Molly is looking a lot like Cas now. Do you see that head full of hair? Just as dark and untamable as his. But she has Sammy’s eyes.”

“And Ellie’s are green, right?” Gabe asked.

“Yes, but not quite the same shade as Dean’s. I think her hair will be the same color as Sam’s.” Cas replied.

“Henry will be a blondie, I think.” Gabe said.

“He’s beautiful. Look at that little button nose.” Dean stroked the pup’s cheek with his thumb, smiling when Henry instinctively snuffled and buried his face against Dean’s chest.

“How are you feeling?” Sam asked as he looked over at Cas. 

“I’m feeling alright so far. I have a bit of my energy back. They’re just starting to kick now. It feels like butterflies are fluttering about in my belly.” Cas smiled as he felt another of those kicks just then.

“Everyone is healthy?” Gabe knew his brother’s concern regarding the smallest pup. It still wasn’t growing as well or as fast as the others.

“For the moment, yes, everyone is developing normally. They’re all squeezed in there tight so Doctor Sanders couldn’t make out all of their sexes. We decided that we don’t want to know if we can’t find out what everyone is. It will be a surprise.” Cas replied.

“Names are picked out?” Sam was curious as to what they would pick this time around, besides Aidan.

“We’re still working on that. We know Aidan for sure, and Jack is a strong contender. We also like Nathan and Daniel. For girls we’re thinking Caitlin, but maybe with a K so I can call her Katie, and Claire is another favorite. Oh, and we like Sophia and Evangeline, but maybe we’d call her Evie. There are others we like as well. We’re still deciding.” Cas rubbed his belly, smiling when he felt another little flutter. He suspected things were going to be rough in another few months with all those little bodies trying to move around one another. Having Dean at home to help him with the girls was helping a lot, and the massage table was coming in very handy lately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Of course they're falling in love with Henry. He's such a sweet little boy. He'll be very much like Sam in temperament when he gets older. I hope you liked this chapter. :)


	47. Pup Scare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas pushes himself further than he should in his condition, leading to problems with the pups.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will start off by saying, HE IS NOT LOSING THE PUPS. But what happens to Cas here, that's what happened to me in my second pregnancy. My older daughter was only about oh, ten months at the time? And I picked her up. BIG mistake! I almost severed a ligament that supports the uterus. Talk about excruciating pain! I got rushed to the hospital because they weren't sure what had happened at first. They thought I had appendicitis at first, but then they realized in had torn a ligament really bad. They told me if I had severed it, they'd have had to do an emergency C-Section. But I didn't, so the doctor put me on strict bed rest until the baby came. Like, I wasn't allowed to lift anything over 5 lbs until the baby was born. And I carried my younger daughter full term. She ended up being a massive baby too, lol. She was 9lbs 2oz. I was already almost full term size at 7 months, so just imagine how much bigger I got! I never had more kids, so I don't know if that ligament would have been affected further by another pregnancy or not. Cas will be hurting for a while, and on bed rest, but he will be ok. Just putting that out there. Enjoy the chapter!

They parted ways and Dean took Cas and the girls home. They barely got inside the house when Cas felt a sharp pain tear across the lower right side of his belly. Dean felt it too and spun around just as his husband was about to drop Ellie. He grabbed the pup and set both girls on the floor as he helped Cas into the kitchen and sat him down at the island.

“Talk to me, Cas. Why are you in pain?” Dean could see his mate grabbing at his stomach as another pain tore through him.

“I-I don’t know! Call Doctor Sanders! C-call an ambulance!” Cas gritted his teeth and watched as Dean pulled his phone out to make the calls. He went to fetch the girls’ who were still thankfully asleep in their carriers and bring them into the kitchen. Dean called his brother and asked if they could come and get the girls while they waited for the ambulance to arrive. The pain had been reduced to a dull cramp but Cas felt wet. He was too scared to look, afraid that one of the sacs had ruptured and he had gone into labor. His eyes filled with tears as he clung to his mate. 

Alan came into the house at Dean’s call and headed straight for the kitchen.

“Oh, crap, what happened?” He asked when he saw Cas’s face.

“We don’t know.” Dean replied. The phone on Alan’s hip chirped and he pulled it off to look at the screen.

“Your ambulance has arrived. I’ve directed them to let them through the gates. Can you stand?” Alan directed the question to Cas.

“I-I think so.” Cas’ legs were wobbly as he stood up. Dean whimpered when he saw the blood that had been left behind on the seat. It was only a little bit but it was enough to get his heart racing and make it jump into his throat.

“I’m here! What happened?” Sam came flying into the kitchen a second ahead of the paramedics who headed straight for Cas. 

“We don’t know. Cas was just suddenly in pain and clutching at his belly and…” Dean looked at the blood on the chair and whimpered again. Hs brother spotted it and his eyes went wide with fear.

“Go with Cas. I’ve got this.” Sam told him. Dean nodded and went to his mate’s side. Cas was lifted onto a gurney and was being wheeled out to the ambulance. Sam frowned at the blood on the chair before looking down at his nieces. They were both awake now, watching the commotion with wide, frightened eyes, though neither girl was crying.

“Let’s hope your Papa is ok.” He told them. Ellie burst into tears.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Please, Mr. Winchester, you need to calm down, you’re upsetting your mate!” The doctor snapped. Dean bared his teeth for a moment before he began to pace. He couldn’t calm down, not when he could still feel his mate’s terror. Cas was afraid he’d just lost the pups. Dean was scared of losing his mate. Calm down? Ha! The doctor was nuts!

“Dean? Honey? Please, I-I can’t relax if you’re this upset. Can you let them give you a mild sedative? So I can relax a bit and let them figure out what is going on?” Cas pleaded. Dean’s eyes flashed red for a moment when he saw the doctor pull out a metal device and begin to push Cas’ legs apart.

“Dean! Stop! Please!” Cas cried. Dean blinked, his eyes returning to green.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I’m just scared.” He apologized and went to stand by his mate’s side. Cas squeezed his hand as he watched the doctor. He grimaced as the cold piece of metal was slipped inside and he was being stretched wide. A nurse appeared next to Dean holding a syringe. She looked up at him expectantly.

“Yeah, ok.” He nodded once and she cleaned a spot on his arm before plunging the needle in. Before she’d even pulled the needle out, he could feel himself relaxing. As he relaxed, the tension in Cas bled out and he relaxed too.

“Thank you, Dean. I feel much better now.” Cas lifted his hand to place it against his mate’s chest. Dean covered it with his own and turned his attention to the doctor. A tech was pulling an ultrasound machine into the room and a few minutes later had it up and working. He stepped back as the doctor pulled Cas’ gown up far enough to have access to his belly and went about applying the cold gel and moving it around. They watched as he moved the wand around, counting the pups and looking everywhere. He put the wand down and using his fingers he did an external exam. Cas whimpered as the doctor’s fingers moved across his skin. When they moved lower on his belly he cried out as a particularly painful spot was touched.

“Hmm.” Doctor Turner frowned as he checked the area around it.

“Well?” Dean asked after several more minutes of silence.

“Ok, so I have four heartbeats, though…one is weaker than the others. It looks like Castiel has torn one of the ligaments that is supporting his uterus. There are four and they act like bands to hold the uterus up. The one on the lower right side is the one affected. It’s not severed, as far as I can tell, but it’s darn close. That would explain the sharp pains he felt earlier.”

The doctor pulled the metal device out and Cas sighed with relief. He was aching something fierce from it, but at least it was gone. Doctor Turner leaned in to watch as the tech moved the wand around again and pointed things out that he had noticed to the doctor.

“Mmm, that’s what I was thinking too. I see nothing torn in the vaginal cavity, or in his cervix.” He turned to look at Cas.

“So the bleeding? It’s unrelated to the ligament. It’s due to the fact that your cervix is extremely swollen and all of the walking and cramping that occurred earlier caused bleeding. Son, I’m putting you on bed rest for the rest of your pregnancy. Minimal walking, and try not to exert yourself. Don’t be picking anything heavy up. I’d say you must have lifted something heavy up and it put strain on your uterus. If you want these pups to make it, you need to take care of yourself, understand?”

Cas nodded quickly. “I was carrying one of the pups in her carrier when I felt the pain. You’re sure these pups are ok? Even the small one?”

“I see a heartbeat. I’d say yes, even the little one is alright for now.” The tech replied.

Cas breathed a sigh of relief. “So what if I need to go out?”

“To the doctor and back, that’s it.” Doctor Turner replied. “And I expect these pups won’t make it even as long as March. We want them to stay in as long as possible, so you need to take it easy. It’ll drive you a bit nuts to just sit around all day, but trust me, your body will thank you.”

Cas nodded and looked up at Dean who appeared to be lost in thought. “Dean?”

His mate seemed to shake off whatever had him so distracted and he looked at Cas.

“I was just thinking. Til the pups are here, we either need to ask for pack help or hire a nanny.” He said. Cas frowned.

“I don’t want a nanny.”

“Then we’ll call on the pack for help. We know they will.” Dean said. Cas nodded. 

“Ok.”

“So when can he be released?” Dean asked the doctor.

“We’d like to keep him overnight for observations. His room is ready now.” The doctor replied.

Cas whimpered and pulled at his husband’s shirt. “Call Sam, make sure the pups are ok.”

Dean nodded and pulled his phone out. After a brief call home to ask about the girls and give Sam an update, Cas was ready to be moved to his room. He followed his mate up into the private suite they had arranged, and Cas was transferred into the bed. 

“Dean, come here. Lay with me.” Cas held out his arms and Dean went to him. He stopped long enough to take off his boots before laying down next to his mate. His instinct to keep his mate and pups safe was still strong and he pressed up close to his mate carefully laid a hand over Cas’ belly.

“Does that hurt? If I touch you?” He asked.

“No, just don’t touch my right side near my hip.” 

Dean was laying on his mate’s left side but his eyes went to the spot in question. “I shouldn’t have let you carry her in, she’s getting too big. I should have known…” He buried his nose against his mate’s neck and tried not to let his anger at himself take over. Thankfully the sedative the nurse had given him was still in effect.

“Please, don’t upset yourself. It stresses me out. This wasn’t your fault. I thought I was ok for another few months, but I should have taken into account that I’m carrying multiples and taken it easy.” Cas sighed and placed one hand over Dean’s. “We’ll be ok. Let’s just concentrate on getting better and making sure the girls get enough attention, ok?”

“Yeah, ok.” Dean felt anything but calm agreeing to that, but he was damn well going to do his best.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Cas? Baby, you have company.” Dean stepped into the bedroom and looked at his mate who was lying back in bed crocheting. He was already on to the second blanket he was making for his new pups. Cas looked up.

“Oh? Who?”

“Tess came to see you.” Dean motioned to someone in the hall and a moment later Tess was walking in.

“Hi!” Cas greeted her happily. He set his yarn and hook aside and held a hand out to her. She went to him, smiling as he squeezed her hand.

“How are you feeling?” She asked him. Dean pulled over one of the two armchairs he had brought up to the room for him and Cas to sit in. She sat down but continued to hold on to his hand.

“Better. I’m still a bit tender where the ligament tore but Dean makes sure I get plenty of rest.” He replied.

“Good. How far along are we now?” 

“Four months, almost five. I’m already a whale.” He stuck his lower lip out in a pout but Tess just smiled.

“You’re nothing of the sort.” 

“I agree with Tess. I think you’re beautiful like this.” Dean was coming out of the bathroom with a cup of tea. He carried it over to the bed and handed it to his mate before crawling up onto the bed and sitting next to him. 

“Oh, shut up.” Cas laughed but Dean knew he was annoyed. He scooted closer and risking his Omega’s ire, he placed a hand over the swell of his belly. 

“It’s actually quite common for an Alpha to be in a heightened state of attraction to their mate while they’re pregnant. It has to do with the hormones you’re secreting. I bet he’s touching you more, doting on you, and constantly wanting to be in physical contact with your belly, right? And he’s extremely protective?” She winked at Dean even as she directed the words to Cas. 

“Well…yes. I didn’t think it was real though. I thought he was just messing with me, trying to make me feel better when I feel at my fattest.” Cas looked over at his mate who shook his head.

“No, baby. I think you’re gorgeous all the time, but even more so when you’re carrying my pups. You know I don’t lie to you. You’d bite me if I did.” Dean rubbed gently at his mate’s belly. Cas laughed.

“Yes, I would.”

“So, the reason I came by was I brought you something, it’s to help you when you do have to get up and move about.” She picked up a bag Cas hadn’t seen her bring in and set on the floor next to the bed. 

“What is it?” He asked. Even Dean was sitting up to see what it was.

“It’s a belly brace. I will show Dean how to help you into it. What this will do is help to redistribute your weight so it’s putting less strain on the uterus and the ligaments supporting it. Dean called me last week to tell me what had happened and to ask what I thought would be best for delivering. I would wear this if you have to be up and on your feet for any length of time, such as trips to the doctor, or if you need to get up and stretch your legs and want to see your pups playing. This will help. Why don’t you stand up for a moment and I’ll show you both how to use it.”

Dean helped Cas up from the bed and they watched as Tess took what looked like a big mess of Velcro straps all attached from the bag. She walked them through putting it on Cas and adjusting it so that his belly was supported and the weight was evenly distributed.

“Oh! Wow!” He gasped once the final strap was in place. 

“Feels better, eh?” She asked.

“Much better! That torn ligament is aching from the pressure a bit, but my belly doesn’t feel as heavy as it did.” He replied. “I want to see the girls.” 

“Come on then.” Dean took his mate’s hand and led him out of the bedroom and across the hall to the nursery with Tess following.

“How does it feel to walk?” She asked.

“Easier. Will this help clear up until I’m due?” He turned to look at her as Dean opened the nursery door.

“It should. But by that point I have recommended that Dean invest in a wheelchair. Not because you’ll be an invalid but because you’ll be huge by that point, and moving about will be painful and difficult. The wheelchair will help prevent anything else from tearing.” 

They walked into the nursery where Sam was sitting in the rocking chair reading a story to the twins. Henry was playing with blocks on the floor at his feet. Sam looked up and smiled.

“Hey, you’re on your feet! How are you feeling?” 

“Pretty good, actually.” Cas replied.

“What’s that?” Sam pointed at the brace he was wearing.

“A belly brace. To help support my growing uterus.” 

Sam lifted the girls up and got up from the rocking chair so his brother in law could sit. Cas smiled and sat down in the chair. Ellie immediately reached for him.

“Papa!” She whined until Sam set her down in his lap.

“Hey, sweet girl. Are you being good for Uncle Sam?” Cas smoothed back the girl’s hair. She looked up at him with large hazel eyes and smiled. Her little hands patted his belly.

“Pup pup?”

Dean had been working with the girls and telling them to be careful because of Papa’s belly. They seemed aware that something was different and they were being very gentle for being so young. 

“Yes, those are your pups in there.” He rubbed lightly at his belly and she did the same.

“Awww…” She said before giving him a toothy grin. Dean had been trying to teach the girls empathy and to be careful with Cas, and he couldn’t help but smile back. When he looked up he saw Dean holding Molly and Tess playing with her.

“The girls are absolutely beautiful. I can’t believe these are the same pups I delivered not all that long ago. You two make some beautiful children.” Tess smiled at both of them. “And who’s this handsome fellow?” She knelt down next to Henry who offered her one of his blocks.

“That’s my son Henry.” Sam replied proudly. The adoption wasn’t finished yet, but it wouldn’t be long.

“He’s beautiful.” She swept a lock of blonde hair off his forehead and he smiled up at her.

“Thank you.” Sam was beaming at the compliment. Tess stood up and turned to Dean.

“I have paperwork in the bag for you both to look over. It’s for the care during pregnancy with multiples. I should have given you it with these two, but it’s even more imperative that you read through it now.” She turned a bit so she could address Cas too.

“Being that we descend from wolves, you could very well have your pups here at home again, but I do not recommend it, not with your ligament healing, and the fact that Dean says one pup is smaller than the others and not fairing as well. It would be safer to deliver in a hospital, and I can meet you there and do it. I like the idea that we would have doctors and nurses close by in the event of any complications.”

Cas nodded and looked up at his mate who was frowning but also nodding. He could feel the worry rippling across their bond along with a surge of protectiveness.

“It’s alright, Dean.” He said softly. Dean’s frown deepened but Cas could feel him easing up. He’d need to take his mate back to their room and try to ease his worries. Dean worried endlessly about him this time around. More than he had with the girls, and it was exhausting for them both.

“Thank you, Tess. You’ve been amazing and we very much appreciate your help and guidance.” Cas told her. She gave his shoulder a squeeze.

“It’s always my pleasure. If you have any problems with the brace, just give me a call. We’ll talk soon.”

“I’ll see her out.” Sam said, and followed Tess out of the room.

“Honey, I’m fine. I’m healing and now this brace will help by taking added strain off.” Cas reached out a hand and Dean moved closer, shifting Molly to his other hip so he could take it.

“I know, but I’m worried about our little pup too. I need to get you back to bed.”

“As soon as Sam comes back up here, we’ll go. The pups can’t be left alone.” Cas said. Ellie had slid off his lap and was now trying to pull blocks out of Henry’s little tower. He was fussing, trying to take them back.

“Hey, guys, share. Let Ellie have a couple. Ellie, stop stealing all of Henry’s blocks.” Dean told them. 

Sam was back only a minute later, and he helped Cas up from the chair.

“Going to go back and lay down?” He asked.

“I think I want to take a bath. Dean? Help me?” Cas looked at his mate who quickly handed Molly over to Sam and followed Cas back across the hall to their bedroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Cas will be ok, the pups are ok, Dean is still a doting husband and father, and lets all agree that Tess is awesome here. :)


	48. Game Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas is in labor. It's game time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't really know where to end this chapter because it's so long, so I just split it. You'll get this now and on Sunday you'll get the actual delivery. You'll finally get to know what the sexes are! I can just imagine how many of you are ticked that I'm not putting that up now. Sorry, it would seriously be like a 10,000 word chapter if I put everything up! I need to have SOME suspense! Enjoy!

“I’ll get the water started.” Dean closed the bedroom door and started for the bathroom but Cas caught his hand and pulled him back.

“In a minute. First, I want you to tell me what really has you so on edge lately. I can feel it, and it’s stressing me out. I know we haven’t had sex since I got hurt…”

“No, it’s not sex. Honey, I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you, you know that. I am worried about your health in general, and about the pups. It’s on my mind constantly.” The worried crease was still knitting his brow together, and Cas hated seeing his mate like that. He pulled Dean closer so he could strip the man’s tee shirt off. 

“What are you doing?” Dean asked. Cas could smell the first sparks of arousal in his Alpha, but he needed skin on skin contact.

“Help me out of the brace? I need my shirt off.” 

Dean guided Cas over to the bed and took the brace off. Cas pulled his shirt off and tossed it aside before reaching again for Dean. 

“Come here, I need you close.” Cas led him to the edge of the bed and they laid down together. He knew how obsessed Dean was with his breasts when he was pregnant so he took one of his mate’s hands and placed it over his left breast.

“Yeah?” The look of joy and hopefulness on the Alpha’s face was beautiful.

“Yes, darling. It’s alright,” Cas assured him. His breasts had finally dried up after he had stopped nursing the girls, but they were swelling again with this new pregnancy, though not yet with milk. He found that in this state they were more sensitive to his mate’s gentle touches, and that he liked it. And knowing that Dean was even more attracted to him like this put him more at ease with how his body currently looked. He rolled onto his back and sighed with contentment when his mate’s mouth latched onto his nipple, kissing and sucking gently at the sensitive bud. Dean was relaxing, and his arousal was growing with each passing minute. They’d have to air out the room later, but knowing how happy his mate currently was, it was worth it.

“Cas, I need you, baby.” Dean purred and found his way up to the mating mark on his Omega’s neck where he licked at it, causing his husband to gasp loudly. 

“Dean.” He whimpered as he reached for his sweatpants and pushed them down his legs. Dean helped him with his underwear, and he gladly opened his legs up.

“Fuck, baby, you’re so perfect.” Dean kissed him long and slow while one hand found its way down between his mate’s legs to rub against his slick hole. Cas was leaking so much slick the bed would be saturated later, and Dean hated letting that go to waste, so with a wink and a mischievous grin, he slid down the bed until he was settled between his mate’s legs. He lapped up the honeyed fluid before darting his tongue past the rim. Cas growled and Dean knew if his mate could reach him, he’d be demanding Dean do more than just tease him.

“Dean!” 

Dean kissed the inside of each thigh before taking his mate’s cock in his mouth and swallowing it down.

“Gah!” Cas grabbed at the covers on the bed and held on for dear life as his mate gave him one of the best blowjobs of his life. Fingers were gently pressing just under his balls, rubbing in slow circles that had him coming moments later. He collapsed back against the mattress as he tried to catch his breath.

“That was wonderful, but I need you, Dean. I need you inside me,” Cas whined. Dean was still lying on his stomach, but he smiled up at his mate.

“Feeling a bit horny, babe?”

“Understatement,” Cas grumbled.

Slick was still oozing out of his mate, though to a much lesser degree, so sliding a finger in was easy. Cas was begging for a second one only a minute later. A third one was added soon after that.

“Come on, Dean!” Cas growled. Dean chuckled as he sat back, withdrawing his fingers completely. He wiped them on his own sweatpants and helped Cas to sit up.

“We’re doing this my way or not at all,” he said.

“And what way is that?” Cas asked. He watched his mate strip off his own pants and underwear. Dean’s cock was hard and heavy where it rested against his stomach. How this had once scared him, Cas didn’t know. Now it only brought about excitement and a desperate need to be filled by his mate.

“Slowly, and sitting up. I don’t want to jar your belly too much, so come here.”

Dean sat on his haunches and guided Cas until he was hovering just above his lap. Cas placed his hands on Dean’s shoulders for balance and slowly lowered himself down. It had been several months since they’d had actual, penetrative, locking sex, and he had missed it so much. He almost wanted to sob with the relief this brought him. 

The thrusts were slow at first, and rather shallow. When Dean’s cock brushed against Cas’ cervix the Omega whimpered and Dean froze, ready to pull out and stop completely, but Cas dug his nails into his mate’s shoulder.

“Don’t you _dare_ think of stopping now!” 

Dean smiled and wrapped his arms around his mate’s back as he lowered his mouth to one breast. His strokes picked up in speed but not enough to bring either of them to climax quickly. At first Cas was irritated by the slow pace, but then he felt that heat beginning to build inside him and he moaned. Between his Alpha’s cock and the man’s mouth, he was getting close. He was getting hard again and when Dean’s hand joined in on the action and began stroking until he was completely hard, he felt his orgasm growing closer. His belly prevented him from getting closer to his mate and that aggravated him, but he knew that if he was turned the other way, Dean would be worried the entire time about his ligaments, and then neither man would find any real satisfaction. As it was, his belly was trapped between the two of them, and he was almost there, getting so…close…

“Dean!” He gasped as his second orgasm hit, and he felt the moment his mate’s knot began to catch. He also felt his mate’s hesitation. Dean was thinking of pulling out at the last moment before they knotted.

“Don’t even think about pulling out!” He snarled and pushed down, locking his mate in place as his Alpha came.

“Cas, fuck…” Dean groaned.

“I told you I needed you. That included your knot.”

Dean smiled at his mate. Cas could be quite pushy and demanding when he wanted to be. He actually liked that about the man.

“Hey, can I talk to you about something? Since we’re going to be sitting here like this for a little while yet.”

Cas nodded. “Of course.”

“This is actually a bit embarrassing, but it’s been on my mind.” Dean’s cheeks reddened and Cas could actually feel his embarrassment.

“Honey, you don’t have to be embarrassed with me.” Cas smoothed a hand down his mate’s cheek and purred softly as he attempted to ease the man’s worries.

“I know, but most Alphas….they don’t want this type of thing with their Omega, and most Omegas don’t want to do this kind of thing either, so I will totally get it if you don’t want to either…”

Cas could feel how nervous his mate was getting, and it was starting to affect him.

“Dean, please, just tell me what it is you want. I would give you anything I could, you know this. So what is it that you are wanting to ask?”

“I would like for maybe, at least once…for you to, um, be inside…me?” Dean cringed, waiting for the horrified shock to hit.

“Oh, really?” Cas was mildly surprised by his mate’s request, but he certainly wasn’t horrified. If anything he was maybe a bit curious. Dean was looking up with green eyes full of worry. The Omega smiled reassuringly.

“I think perhaps that would be interesting. I can’t knot you, but I know from my end it’s pleasurable even before you knot me, so I think it could be for you too.”

He felt his mate relax and smile. “Yeah, I think it would be too. I’ve wanted to try it for a while, but…pups.” Dean shrugged and gave a lopsided smile.

“I think we should wait til after this pregnancy is over though. That way I’ll have the leverage I need.” 

Dean’s smile grew even wider. His mate had said yes. He could wait as long as needed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The months were crawling by, and the elections were creeping up on them. Dean did more debates than either of them had thought possible, but the icing on the cake was when Dick Roman decided to attack Dean over his plans for reforming The District. It caused, for lack of a better term, a shit storm, and turned the tides completely in Dean’s favor. Just before their pups were due, Dean won the election by a landslide. Not once had Cas ever doubted his mate. 

By that point Cas was absolutely miserable. He could barely move and getting to his feet without assistance, and without his belly brace, was next to impossible. This particular morning he was cranky. He’d been having mild contractions for two weeks already, and they were finding it to be more and more of a struggle to keep the pups in as long as they could. He was at thirty three weeks, a day away from thirty four, but when he woke that morning the contractions were downright painful. The bed was empty, Dean no doubt downstairs in his office talking to the various staff down at city hall as he gave orders and set up meetings. Most mornings now Dean was up by six and getting his work done so that by ten, when Cas usually woke up, he already had breakfast ready and could spend the rest of the morning and afternoon doting on the Omega. Today, though, it was a little after eight and the cramping in his belly was just too much to let him sleep. He found the intercom button, a nifty device Dean had installed around Cas’ fifth month so he could reach his mate anywhere in the house, and he called down to Dean’s office.

“Dean? Are you there?”

He didn’t receive an answer so he called across the hall to Sam’s old room. Sam and Gabe had been spending no less than four nights a week at the house to help with the girls, and last night they were supposed to have stayed.

“Cas? Everything ok?” His brother replied a moment later.

“No, the contractions are getting worse. I need Dean.” Cas grunted as another one hit.

“I’ll find him. Hang on.”

Cas took his finger off the button and laid back to stare up at the ceiling. It wasn’t long before the door was flying open and Dean was rushing into the room with Sam and Gabe both on his heels.

“I can feel that. That’s worse than usual.” Dean hurried over to the bed and pulled the covers back enough so that he could lift up the birthing gown Cas was wearing. The man was now too big for his regular clothing so he just wore the gowns most days. Careful to keep Cas’ privates covered, Dean lifted the gown up to expose his belly. He could see the pups moving but it didn’t appear that any of his waters had broken yet. The contractions, though, were visible.

“They hurt now. And they’re coming about every five minutes,” Cas said.

“You have a doctor’s appointment at one, but I’m going to call her and tell her we’re on our way now. She may send us straight to the hospital.” Dean pulled the gown down and helped his mate up into a sitting position. He found the belly brace and helped Cas into it.

“I’ll go get the car warmed up,” Sam said and hurried out of the room. Gabe was in the dresser, looking for warm socks. It had snowed, despite the warm springlike weather they had experienced just a week before, and it was cold out. He carried them over to the bed and handed them to Dean, who helped Cas put them on.

“Here, give me the number, I’ll call the doctor’s office myself.” Gabe had his phone out and Dean gave him the number. He left to go check on the pups.

“I need to pee, Dean. Badly.” Cas said. Dean helped his mate up and guided him into the bathroom where he waited for the man to finish his business before guiding him back into the bedroom. He could feel how irritated his mate was, and he tried to put out his own feeling of calm. It wouldn’t do either of them any good if he was projecting his own worry and fear onto the man, so he did what Ellen and Tess had been instructing him to do. He stayed calm.

“Get off me,” Cas snapped when Dean tried to take his arm. Dean dropped his hands and took a step back so he wasn’t hovering. He didn’t take offense though. Cas was miserable and in pain. It radiated through their bond and Dean could feel every single ounce of it.

“She said come on in,” Gabe said as he walked back into the room.

“Where are the girls?” Cas asked.

“School. Jo came and took them to daycare along with Henry this morning,” he replied. The girls now attended daycare five days a week to give everyone a break, and Henry went with them. The adoption had gone through and he was now Henry Winchester, and he was loved deeply by everyone in the pack. Cas whined and Dean was at a loss for what his mate needed. 

“What’s the matter, sweetheart?” He wanted to touch his mate but the man didn’t want that at the moment, so he settled for simply standing close by.

“I don’t know! I want them near me, but at the same time I don’t want them seeing me like this.” Cas huffed in annoyance and looked around for his slippers. With Gabe’s help he got them onto his feet and finally allowed Dean to help guide him to the door.

“Are you done with work for the day?” Cas asked as they started for the stairs. He hadn’t left the second floor in close to two months, and it took him a few minutes to get down them.

“No, apparently the work of a mayor never ends, but I got the important stuff done and out of the way this morning. Everyone at the office knows you’re close to delivering and that I might be unavailable suddenly when it’s time. They have my number and they have Sammy’s. If they can’t reach me they can reach him, and he’ll relay anything important. _You_ are my top priority right now, honey,” Dean told him. Cas gave him a small smile that quickly turned into a grimace as another contraction hit. When it passed he let out the breath he’d been holding.

“Shit that hurts!”

“Did you want something to eat? Should I grab one of your shakes?” Gabe asked.

Cas wasn’t hungry, but he knew he’d need his strength.

“Pack a small cooler full of snacks and those shakes for me? I’m not hungry now, but I’m sure Dean will make me eat something later, and if he doesn’t, Doctor Sanders or Tess will.”

Gabe nodded and headed for the kitchen while Dean led Cas out to the garage. It took him and Sam both to get Cas up and into the Hummer, but they did it. Gabe came with the cooler and handed it over before crawling into the backseat with Sam. Dean got behind the wheel.

“You guys are coming with?” Cas asked, surprised.

“If this is it, you bet your booty we’re coming with,” Gabe replied. Cas smiled at his brother.

“Thank you.”

“We’re family, there’s no need to thank us,” Sam said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cranky Cas, and I don't blame him. Honestly, when I was pregnant I would snap at anyone that tried to sit too close or touch me. I just wanted to be left alone, same as poor Cas here. But it's almost time. Get your seat belts on and tightened, we're in for a bumpy ride!
> 
> I hope you liked this chapter!


	49. You Don't Say Things Like That Dean!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The time is drawing closer for the pups to be born, and Dean accidentally stresses his mate out very badly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dean't not perfect, but he loves his mate and tries to do what he thinks is best for him. Unfortunately, he boo boo's here. It's not as bad as it sounds, but Cas is going to be upset. I do hope you like the chapter.

Doctor Sanders had put a hold on her other appointments so she could see Cas as soon as he was brought through the doors. She didn’t even try to get him up on the table, she just guided him to a chair and let him sit down. A quick external exam and a few minutes monitoring the contractions and heart beats of the pups told her he was in active labor.

“I would know for sure how far into this we were if I could get him up on the table, but…” She knew Cas wasn’t strong enough to climb up on the table.

“I got this.” Dean scooped his mate up and carried him to the table. Cas knew how strong his mate was, he’d learned that a long time ago. Dean set him down gently on the table and helped him to lie down. Doctor Sanders made her internal exam quick.

“Ok, I want you to take him directly to the hospital. He’s already pushing five centimeters. He’ll be even further along by the time you get him there, so hurry. I’ll meet you there after I finish up these morning appointments. And I’ll call Tess, tell her to get to the hospital now.” She took off her glove and tossed it out as Dean helped Cas sit up.

“Alright, we’ll go now. See you in a few hours?” Dean asked.

“Definitely,” she replied.

Dean picked his mate up and set him down on his feet again. “Are you good to walk?”

“Yes, I can walk, but…hold on to me, in case another contraction hits harder than these ones,” Cas looked up at his mate, and Dean could see the fear in the man’s eyes as well as feel it. 

“Of course. Come on, sweetheart. Let’s get to the hospital.” Dean put an arm around his husband’s waist and with his free hand, held onto his arm as he guided him back out to the Hummer where Sam and Gabe were both waiting. Security followed them everywhere, and Alan was busy keeping the media back as Sam got out to help Dean get Cas back into the vehicle. They drove straight to the hospital where staff was waiting with a wheelchair. 

“We have his room ready and waiting,” one nurse said, directing the words to Dean. He nodded.

“Good. His doctor will be here later, and his doula is on her way now.”

Gabe took the keys so he could go park the Hummer while Dean and Sam followed the nurses that were taking Cas up to his room. It was a private room with a huge tub in the center. Cas’ eyes lit up at the sight of it.

“Oh! I can do it in water again?”

“Tess and Doctor Sanders already gave the go ahead, so yes,” Dean said as he and a nurse helped the Omega get to his feet. All but one nurse and Sam left them, and the Beta moved over to the tub to start filling it while Dean helped his mate strip down. Cas was embarrassed, but Sam was polite and averted his eyes as Dean led him over to the tub and helped him get in. The nurse attached a monitor to Cas’ belly, and he settled back in the water, sighing with relief. He looked up at his mate.

“Did you grab the bag so you’ll have clothes later? And so I have a clean gown?”

“It was in the trunk already. I put it out there a few weeks ago. Someone will grab it later,” Dean replied.

“Then get your ass in here with me already,” Cas demanded. Sam snorted and Dean chuckled as he stripped down to his boxers. Dean handed Cas the towel the nurse offered him, and the Omega draped it over his body. He slid into the water and positioned himself behind his mate. Cas sighed contentedly as he leaned back against his mate. He closed his eyes and tried to catch a few more minutes of sleep, even as contractions came and went. The nurse left but came back every twenty minutes or so to check the monitor.

“Tess is here,” Sam announced an hour later. The woman smiled as she crossed the room and knelt down next to the tub.

“It’s time, huh? How are you feeling?” she asked.

“I hurt, but it’s not bad yet. Been trying to sleep,” he replied.

“Did you eat?” 

He cracked an eye and looked over at Sam. “Where’s Gabe? He had the snack bag.”

“In the hall on the phone. He’s handling the necessary calls. I’ll go get it.” Sam left the room and Cas turned back to Tess.

“I ordered an ultrasound. They’re bringing the machine in here in a few minutes. We’re going to drain some of the water so we can do it right here. If I don’t have to move you, I won’t. We’ll just dry your belly and take a look.” She leaned over to drain away all but an inch of water and used a dry towel to dry his belly just as a tech came in with the machine. Tess moved to sit on the edge of the tub as the tech got the ultrasound started. Tess watched the monitor, directing the tech to angle the wand this way or that, depending on which pup she wanted to look at. She frowned when she only counted three.

“Where’s the fourth?” 

The tech moved the wand lower and it took a good ten minutes of searching before they located the fourth heartbeat. The pup was tucked under two of the larger ones. It was weak but its heart was still beating.

“Ok, so it looks like your teeny tiny is under two of the larger pups.. That concerns me a bit, so I have the NICU on call,” Tess said as the tech turned off the machine and took it out of the room.

“The NICU?” Cas looked up with wide, frightened eyes and Dean was helpless to calm him since he was filled with the same fear his mate was.

“They’re all going to need to go to the NICU, they’re preemies, but I’m especially worried about your little peanut,” Tess explained. She leaned over to start filling the tub again, and Cas leaned into his mate as another contraction hit, this one more painful than the previous ones. He whimpered and searched for Dean’s hand until the Alpha wrapped his arms as much as he could around his husband, and Cas was able to link their fingers together.

“Here you go.” Sam walked back in the room and Tess reached out to take the bag and open it. She pulled a shake out and handed it to Cas.

“Drink that first. I’ll order some soup and ice chips.” She got up and left the room. Sam sat down on the edge of the tub.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

“I’m dealing. Have you checked on the pups?” Cas looked up at his brother-in-law, who smiled and pulled his phone out. He placed the call, verifying that the girls were doing well and making sure Henry was as well.

“They’re fine. It’s snack time, then naptime. After nap they’ll be finger painting, and don’t worry about that, I’ll make sure they get baths tonight if there’s any paint left on them.” 

Cas smiled and nodded. Dean kissed his shoulder.

“Drink your shake, sweetheart. You need your energy.”

Cas sipped at the shake. “Can someone put on the television?” He pointed at the one that hung above the tub. Sam found the remote on the far side of the tub and turned it on.

“What do you want to watch?”

“The news. I want to see what they’re saying about us,” Cas replied. Sam found a local news station, snorting when he saw the reporter was actually standing right outside the hospital.

_‘Mayor Dean Winchester is about to become a father for what is technically the second time after the birth last year of his pups Molly and Gabriella. Inside sources say there are no complications so far and that Alpha and Omega are eagerly awaiting the birth of their next set of pups…”_

“Inside source?” Cas looked up at Sam in confusion.

“There are regulations, HIPPA laws that prevent the hospital staff from breaking patient confidentiality, but I went a step further and limited who is allowed to actually come in here and deal with you, with the pups, and I made them all sign a gag order. If anything gets leaked, they face serious jail time, hefty fines _and_ lawsuits from us. Only a complete idiot would open their mouth. This woman is just blowing steam to drive up ratings. Don’t worry about it,” Sam assured him. Cas nodded and looked back up at the television. It was surreal seeing himself on the screen, and seeing Dean. His mate looked so handsome in his three piece suit as the news replayed a speech on Omega rights that Dean had given three months earlier. That particular speech was one he had attended, with doctor’s permission, and he was sitting with Sam behind the podium at which Dean was passionately speaking. He took in his rounded belly, swollen breasts, the thickness of his thighs and burst into tears, alarming both Dean and Sam.

“Baby? What is the matter?” Dean couldn’t see his mate’s face at his current angle, but he could feel his misery and it was alarming. Sam looked up at the television for a moment as he tried to determine what had upset his brother-in-law so much. The speech was one Cas himself had helped to write and Sam knew he was particularly proud of it, so there was no reason to cry over it.

“Please, Cas, honey, talk to me,” Dean pleaded. Cas sniffled before his breath hitched and he turned his head away from the television.

“I’m so fat!” Cas wailed as he burst into tears again. Dean frowned up at his brother, who just shrugged. They both knew it was hormones, but it didn’t make things any more pleasant for the Alpha. He felt incredibly guilty.

“You are _not_ fat. You are carrying our pups, and they’ll be here soon. I hate seeing you like this, so…” Dean took a deep breath. “I think this is it for us. No more pups.” 

Sam’s eyes widened. “Dean! No!” he hissed.

“What? No!” Cas scared both men by screaming. 

“Sammy, get Tess, and a nurse. Quick!” Dean ordered, and Sam was up and running from the room a second later.

“No! No, Dean! No!” Cas was fighting against him, and Dean could feel his mate’s rising panic. Sam came flying back in with Tess and, to the Alpha’s surprise, Doctor Sanders.

“What happened?” The doctor asked as she knelt down next to the tub. Cas was too upset to speak and simply grabbed onto the front of her dress, still sobbing. 

“Dean, I’m going to give him a mild sedative, we need him to calm down so he doesn’t have a heart attack,” she said as she withdrew a syringe from her pocket.

“Do it.” He nodded and watched as the doctor uncapped the needle and plunged it into the Omega’s arm. Almost immediately Cas slumped back against him. His eyes slid shut and a minute later his breathing began to even out as he drifted off.

“I thought you said that was a mild sedative!” Dean looked up at the doctor, clearly surprised by the effect the medicine was having on his mate.

“It is. I’m going to check the pups. His panic attack stressed them out. Now why don’t you tell me what the heck happened?” she said as she checked the monitor.

“He asked to watch the news, so we turned it on. They were recapping a speech I did right after my inauguration, and he just…burst into tears. When I asked him what was wrong he cried harder, saying he was fat,” Dean explained. She looked up at him, her eyes narrowing.

“And how did you respond to that?”

Dean looked down at his sleeping mate. The man was completely calm for the moment.

“I, uh, told him we were done having pups. I can’t stand seeing him like this. He hates the way his body looks when he’s pregnant, and I don’t want him resenting me later if he can’t get back down to his pre-pup weight. I want him to be happy and healthy, and if he’s worrying about his body, he’s not.”

“So, essentially you told an already overly emotional Omega with body image issues that you no longer want to mate with him,” she said.

Dean’s eyes shot up. “That’s not what I said!”

“That is what he heard. That you don’t want him to birth any more of your pups. You have to be careful how you word things when he’s in this state. When he wakes up, you better make darn sure he knows how much you love and want him. Do you want more pups?” she asked.

“Well, I always wanted a houseful of them, but we’re damn close to that now. I would always want however many pups he was willing to give me. I love kids, and I’d have a hundred if I could, but not if he’s going to hate himself or hate me,” he said.

“He’ll be alright in a few weeks. It’s stressful to carry pups, even a single one, and he’s carried two and now he’s carrying another four. He feels like a beached whale, and I know how that feels, I had my own pups and felt huge with each one. My hormones were all over the place, and my mate was stressed out by it too. But I would have flipped had he told me no more while I was pregnant, and I’m not even an Omega. Remember, the Omegas are the peacekeepers of a pack, but they’re also the mothers, or more commonly called the breeders. It is at the core of their being, even though they are really so much more than that, and you just hit him right where it hurts.” 

Dean felt so awful. His guilt was so deep it brought him to tears and he hugged his mate tighter at the next contraction. Cas moaned and his eyes fluttered before opening.

“That one hurt,” he said, his voice thick from the sedative.

“Looked pretty painful too,” Doctor Sanders said as she checked the monitor. Gabe walked in with the phone still pressed to his ear.

“How is he doing? All good?” he asked.

“A bit of a panic attack, but he’s alright now.” Sam replied. Gabe mumbled goodbye to the person on the phone as he walked over to the tub.

“What would he have a panic attack over?”

Dean gave a brief synopsis of what had happened, earning himself a glare from the other Alpha.

“Dean, you know better,” he chastised.

“Yeah, I know!” Dean was frustrated. Cas moaned and opened his eyes.

“What happened? Why are you upset?” He craned his head back until he was looking at Dean’s face. “What’s the matter?”

“Nothing, I’m just being stupid.” Dean kissed his mate’s cheek, but Cas growled.

“Don’t lie to me, Dean. And why the fuck am I so tired?”

“I upset you before, on accident. Doctor Sanders gave you something to calm you down,” Dean replied. Cas frowned, and Dean knew he was trying to remember what had happened.

“Are the pups ok though?”

“Yes, they’re fine,” Doctor Sanders said. Cas turned to look at her, and she could see how hard he was struggling against the sedative.

“Even the little one?” he asked.

“Without another ultrasound, it’s hard to determine that, but overall they’re doing well,” she replied.

“Bring the machine back, do another one. I want my mate to have peace of mind,” Dean said firmly. Doctor Sanders looked at Tess who nodded and quietly left the room. Cas was struggling to stay awake.

“Water’s cold,” he mumbled. Dean was in agreement with that.

“Sam, can you drain this and-”

“Owwww!” Cas cried out.

“Water broke,” Doctor Sanders announced. The water was tinged red with blood. Tess returned, hurrying over to the tub when she saw they were all fussing over Cas.

“What happened?”

“Water broke,” Doctor Sanders told her. Tess nodded and grabbed her bag. 

“I’ll be right back.”

She disappeared into the bathroom while Sam drained the tub and refilled it. By the time he had it filled to Cas’ hips, Tess was back, dressed in a tee shirt and shorts. She climbed into the other end of the tub.

“I’m going to check you, ok? I need to know how dilated you are.”

Cas nodded and opened his legs up for her. She did a quick check of his cervix while Doctor Sanders checked his heart rate and the pups.

“Ok, we’re at seven,” Tess announced.

“Can you feel the pup?” Doctor Sanders asked.

“It’s still floating. Not ready yet.”

Cas groaned through the next contraction, and Dean ended up gritting his own teeth since he was feeling it too. If it hurt him that much he could only imagine how badly his mate was hurting. The next hour was spent with Gabe floating in and out of the room as family began showing up, and he handled the announcements Dean was sending out to the media. Each time Gabe stepped outside, they saw it on the news. 

Ellen and Jo came, and eventually Bobby did as well. Michael called to check on Cas, and so did Rachael. Apparently they were both tuned in to the Kansas news thanks to an app, and they were alerted the moment Cas popped up in the media. Ellen fussed like she usually did, making sure Cas ate, and making sure Dean did as well. Abby arrived to take over communications with the media so Gabe could be with the rest of the pack, and for the next three hours people paced and talked and watched the news while Dean and Tess focused on Cas. Doctor Sanders left to order tests and make sure things were up and ready in the NICU, and when the first incubator was rolled into the room, Dean felt a surge of fear. His pups might not be healthy, and that terrified him.

“Dean? Why are you scared?” Cas asked.

“S-sorry, just worried about the pups.” He nodded towards the incubator that one of the nurses was setting up. Cas whined with the next contraction and Tess went back to checking him.

“Game time, we’re at ten. I can feel a head of hair. It won’t be long now.”

Sam had moved over to the bed where he was sitting with Gabe.

“What time is it?” Cas suddenly blurted.

“Uh, almost four?” Sam said, checking his phone.

“Who’s going to pick up the girls and Henry?” Dean asked.

“Oh, shit, the pups.” Gabe was getting up but Jo stood up first.

“I’ll get them and take them back to your house,” she said.

“You’re sure? Can you handle all three of them?” Dean asked.

“Course I can. Henry likes to help me too. He’s a good boy. I’ll order a pizza and sit them down in the den to watch a movie. At eight I’ll start getting them ready for bed.” She helped out often enough that she knew the routine.

“I’ll go over there once these pups are here, make sure no one’s giving her a hard time without their daddy and papa there,” Ellen assured him. Dean smiled and nodded.

“Thanks.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so incredibly tired that I really don't have anything witty to say. It's been a rough last couple of days for my family and I've gotten very little sleep. I'm seriously debating on crawling into bed now, but it's only 8:15, and I don't want to be wide awake at 5am. So I will *try* to stick it out a while longer. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and have a wonderful evening.


	50. They're Here...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The pups are finally here, but thre are some complications with one of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yes, the pups are here, and there are some complications with the tiniest pup. Don't worry, it's not going to die! I decided to give a particularly long chapter this time so that you have the sexes and names for all of the pups. I hope you enjoy this chapter. :)

Tess drained and filled the tub again, this time removing the monitor completely from Cas’ belly so she could add more water. The contractions were coming hard and fast and the Omega was practically screaming by the time the first pup crowned.

“Oh, it’s so tiny…” Tess said as the pup came out.

“Shit, are they supposed to be that tiny?” Sam asked. Even Gabe was frowning.

“What’s wrong with my pup?” Cas demanded between the contractions.

“It’s small because there are so many in there. This is normal.” Tess motioned to the nurse who was ready and waiting.

“Sam, can you go find Doctor Sanders and get her back in here please?” Tess asked. He nodded and hurried to find the doctor.

By the time Tess had the pup out and was clearing the nose and mouth, Sam was returning with the doctor.

“It’s a boy,” Tess announced. Doctor Sanders grabbed a towel and accepted the pup from her. 

“He’s not crying. Why isn’t he crying?” Dean asked.

“He’s having trouble breathing. We need to get him on oxygen,” Doctor Sanders replied as she hurried the pup over to the incubator. Gabe followed her over with his phone and snapped pics of the pup as she checked him over and they got him set up with a nasal cannula. He finally cried, and it was music to everyone’s ears. Cas sobbed with relief and leaned heavily back on his mate.

Because of the circumstances and the need for privacy, everything Doctor Sanders needed to take care of the pups and examine them was there in the room. She got the pup weighed and measured before doing the APGAR test. The nurse took him when she was finished, putting his diaper on and swaddling him tight in a receiving blanket before putting him in the incubator. Gabe took more pictures and brought the phone over to show Dean and Cas. The next set of contractions were starting and the water for the second pup had broken already, but Cas still snatched the phone from his brother.

“Oh! Dean, look at him! He’s beautiful!”

“He’s a tiny version of you, babe. Look at all that dark hair. He’s beautiful.” Dean had to blink back the tears that were blurring his vision. He couldn’t wait to hold the pup.

“You have a name yet?” Gabe asked.

“We’ll name them later when we can hold them,” Dean replied. Gabe nodded.

“Makes sense.”

“We have another head!” Tess announced. “This one’s a blondie!”

Dean chuckled. It seemed they had a mix going on with their pups.

“Fuuuuuck!” Cas growled as he bore down. “This one hurts!”

“This one might be the big one I saw,” Doctor Sanders said. 

“They never came back with the ultrasound machine,” Dean complained.

“It was in use, there’s a difficult delivery going on down the hall,” she explained. He couldn’t begrudge them that. His pups weren’t the only important ones.

“I hope things turn out alright for them.” He really did.

“And…we have…a girl!” Tess announced. “Oh! And she’s an Alpha!”

“Cate, her name is Cate!” Cas gasped as he tried to catch his breath. The pup was crying so Tess handed her to Cas. He immediately began to nurse her.

“Cate, I like that. Catherine? Not Caitlin?” Dean leaned over his mate’s shoulder so he could see the pup. “She’s so beautiful.”

“Yes, Catherine. It seems more fitting,” Cas agreed.

“With a K, like we agreed,” Dean said.

“Kate. I like that better.” Cas smiled up at his mate. 

“Katherine Grace, how’s that?” Dean asked.

“Yes, I love that.” Cas purred as his pup nursed. She fell asleep after only a few minutes, and Doctor Sanders took her to do her exam.

“I can’t get over that head of blonde hair, it’s so much lighter than Molly’s and Ellie’s ever was,” Gabe said as he took a ton of new pictures. Two more nurses were walking in pushing three more incubators into the room. After Kate was cleaned up, measured and weighed, she was wrapped up like her brother and placed into one of them. Cas’ contractions were starting up again, the water already having broken and the third pup was born very quickly.

“He’s not breathing!” Tess announced. She cleared the pup’s nose and throat but he wasn’t taking a breath.

“Clip him, give him here,” Doctor Sanders ordered. Tess did as directed and handed the pup over. Cas was in tears as more contractions started. The last water had already broken and the contractions were nonstop.

“I want this over with!” he sobbed. 

“I know, sweetheart, I know. You’re doing such a good job.” Dean kissed his mate’s shoulder and let Cas squeeze his hand as hard as he needed to. Even as the last pup was born they continued to watch Doctor Sanders working on their son. 

“We have another girl,” Tess announced.

“He’s breathing!” The doctor cried out at the same time Tess made the new announcement.

Cas sighed, and this time when he leaned back into his mate he let his entire body relax. 

“You did so good, sweetheart, I’m so proud of you. We have four beautiful babies. They’re perfect, so perfect.” Dean kissed every spot on his mate he could reach and watched as Tess handed over their newest daughter. She laid the pup on Cas’ chest where she squirmed and squinted up at him.

“She’s so perfect.” Cas stroked a finger down his daughter’s cheek and she turned her nose into the palm of his hand as she tried to scent him.

“She’s so tiny. Look at how tiny she is.” Dean reached around his mate to touch her. She had a sparse amount of hair on her head but it was dark like Cas’.

“I’m going to take her, get her weighed and cleaned up,” Doctor Sanders said. They watched as she took their daughter and carried her over to the exam table where she’d worked on the other three pups. Tess was busy getting Cas cleaned up. With help from Sam and Ellen, Dean got Cas out of the tub and dressed. They moved him over to the bed, where Doctor Sanders came over to do an exam on him. Almost the moment Cas’ head hit the pillow, he was out.

“He’s exhausted.” Gabe came over, smoothing a lock of his brother’s hair aside as he looked down at him. Dean had gone to grab a towel and was trying to dry himself off.

“I need someone to go down to the car and get my bag. I need dry clothes and the stuff for the pups,” he said.

“Give me the keys. Reporters don’t know me as well and shouldn’t harass me.” Bobby had been sitting quietly in the corner, but he got to his feet. Dean nodded towards the pants he’d left on the shelf in the corner.

“In the front pocket.”

Bobby found the keys and left to go get the bag. 

“We’re going to take the pups to the neonatal intensive care now,” a nurse said. Dean turned to Gabe.

“Go with them. Take one of my men. Don’t let my pups out of your sight.”

Gabe nodded and followed the nurses out of the room with the incubators.

“They won’t harm your pups,” Doctor Sanders said as she checked Cas’ blood pressure.

“I’m sure you’re right, but the temptation to snap pictures and leak them is a strong one. Money is offered for such pics, and I keep my personal life very private. No one needs to know the orientation of my pups unless I tell them. And no one needs to know how my mate or I are doing unless I deem to tell them. You may think me paranoid. I think I’m protecting my family, and if Cas were awake right now he’d demand that I or someone we trusted go with the pups. I will also be stationing security at the nursery until the pups are strong enough to be in here with Cas,” Dean spoke firmly, and she wasn’t surprised to see his eyes flash red.

“Calm down, I completely understand. You’re stressing your mate out, his heart rate is increasing.” 

Dean blinked and the red was gone. He hurried over to the bed just as Cas’ eyes fluttered and opened.

“Dean? Are you upset again?” The words slurred as they left the Omega’s mouth. He reached out for Dean, and the Alpha took his hand.

“I’m sorry, honey. I’m just trying to protect our pups.”

Cas looked around the room and noticed the incubators were gone.

“Where are they? Dean? Where are my pups?”

“They’re in the NICU, honey. They’re preemies, remember? They need special care,” Dean explained, careful to keep his tone and his emotions calm.

“Who’s with them? Go watch them, Dean!” Cas cried. Dean could feel his mate panicking again so he grabbed his husband’s face and held it between his hands.

“Gabe is with them, and he’s not going to leave them. I also have security watching over them. They are safe, I promise.”

Cas’ lower lip quivered, and he nodded. “You’re sure? No one can hurt them?”

“No one, and as soon as they’re strong enough they’re moving in here with you, and security will be posted at the door at all times.”

“Little Aidan? Is he ok?” Cas asked. The second boy had been even tinier than the first. He was the one that had not been breathing.

“He’s breathing. Would you like for me to go and check on him?” 

“Yes, please.” Cas begged.

“As soon as Bobby brings up my bag I’ll go,” Dean promised.

It was a few minutes before Bobby returned, a deep scowl on his face.

“Them damned reporters are vultures, you know that? They didn’t recognize me, but they sure knew your car. I had to call for security to come and shoo them away so I could come back in,” he said as he handed the bag over.

“Figured. I’m going to go change and then go check on the pups,” Dean said as he headed for the bathroom.

“I’ll go with you, darlin,” Ellen told him.

It was only a few minutes later that Dean was dressed and ready to go see his pups. As he left the room, Ellen fell in next to him.

“Gonna have your hands full with six pups,” she said.

“Yeah, I know. I’m glad the girls are walking now. It’ll be hard enough toting around four newborns. I don’t want to have to carry them, too,” he sighed.

“You know, Bobby and me, we’re here to help too. Jo as well. If you need us, you let us know.” 

Dean smiled tiredly and nodded. “I wonder if Cas and I are in over our heads. This is a lot of kids, and I sort of fucked up today scaring him the way I did. He doesn’t want a nanny. How am I going to run not only my business, but this city _and_ raise a family? I don’t want to neglect my responsibilities.” 

They had reached the NICU where they could see Gabe and Alan inside, talking to one of the nurses.

“You’ll do what’s best for your family because that’s what you do. You’re a strong man, Dean. Smart, good, and the best leader this pack could have asked for. As a pack we will work together to help with the pups. _You are not alone_. You’ll never be alone. Neither will Cas. If you need help, you only need to ask for it. But do me a favor?” she asked as she looked up at him.

“Anything.” 

“Can you remember to use the damn condoms? At least for a few more years?”

Dean laughed and nodded.

“Trust me, I have no intentions of forgetting them again!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean washed up and slipped on the scrubs he was provided so he could go in and see his pups. Since only two people were allowed in at a time, Alan left to wait outside with Ellen while Dean and Gabe visited with the pups.

“I heard two names. Are all the pups named yet?” Alan asked.

“No, I don’t think so. Aidan is the tiny boy, the one they worried most about as he was developing, and Kate is the little girl with the blonde hair. I don’t know what they’ll name the other two,” Ellen replied.

“Those are good names. They’re having problems with Aidan though. He stopped breathing on them twice since he was moved in there. See how Dean’s not picking him up? He’s just reaching through to touch the pup? They’re afraid to move him. I have two of my men coming to stand watch tonight. I don’t trust those reporters outside not to bribe someone to take pictures, or to sneak one of their own inside. I arranged for the pups to be cared for at the back, where clear pictures can’t be taken of them. They said the first boy and Kate might be able to join Cas in the next few days, and the second girl, she’s the biggest, so she could go in as early as tomorrow.” 

Ellen closed her hand into a fist and pressed it to her mouth as she sent up a silent prayer. 

“I hope they’re all going to be ok.” 

“I hope so too,” he agreed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas woke to find he was alone in the room except for Sam and Bobby. The light outside the window was dark, indicating it was night.

“Where’s Dean?” He pushed himself up a bit, wincing at how tender his belly was. That was not a feeling he had missed.

“He was in here for a while earlier, but you were asleep. He was called back to the NICU. They’re, uh, having some complications with one of the pups,” Sam replied nervously. Cas grunted as he reached for the button that would raise the bed up.

“Call a nurse. Now,” he demanded.

“Why?” Sam asked as he moved to the door. All he had to do was send one of the security staff to go fetch one.

“Because I’m going to go see my pups.” Cas swung his legs over the edge of the bed until his feet were planted firmly on the floor.

“Now hold on, son. You just delivered four pups, and you’ve lost a lot of blood. Take it easy so you don’t get dizzy,” Bobby said.

“Where’s Ellen?” Cas asked. He knew she’d take him if he asked.

“She went to your house to check on the pups. Jo already put them to bed but you know El, she’s a mama bear. Needs to make sure all her kin are safe and taken care of.” Bobby moved to Cas’ side as the man swayed slightly. He’d been right, Cas was dizzy. He was also starving.

“Nurse is coming now.” Sam said as he walked back in. “Hey, what are you doing out of bed?” 

“I’m going to go and see my pups,” Cas said even more firmly. 

“No one’s stopping you, but you can’t walk it. I told McMillan to have the nurse bring a wheelchair for you. How about we get a robe on you? So the entire hospital doesn’t see your bare butt?” Sam said.

“Get my gown from Dean’s bag. He packed me several.” Cas pointed at the bag where it sat on the shelf by the bathroom. Sam went and found the gown, helping his brother in law to strip off the hospital gown and put on the birthing one. Bobby found a brand new robe, still in its plastic tucked into a drawer under the shelves, so he grabbed it and brought it over. Cas slid it on over the gown just as the nurse walked in with the wheelchair.

“I’ll go with you,” Sam said.

“Well I’m not staying here alone,” Bobby snorted.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The trip to the NICU seemed to take forever, but soon Cas was being wheeled inside while Bobby and Sam looked in through the window. He switched to another wheelchair that was exclusive to the nursery and washed up, adding a scrub gown over his robe before a nurse wheeled him in to his mate.

“Cas? Babe, you should be in bed sleeping.” Dean was sitting in a rocking chair with one of the pups in his arms. Cas could feel his mate’s concern for his health, but he was more concerned for the pups.

“How’s Aidan? Sam said he stopped breathing?”

Dean’s expression turned grim. “Yeah, he did a few times. He’s breathing now though. They almost had to intubate him. It might still happen.”

“Which pup are you holding?” Cas asked. Dean stood up and lowered their child into his mate’s arms.

“This is the little girl we haven’t named yet. I want to call her Evangeline, like we talked about. Just look at her, she’s like a tiny angel.” Dean touched the pup’s cheek, and she wrinkled her tiny nose in her sleep. It made Cas smile.

“I like Evangeline. How about Noelle for her middle name. Do you like that?” He looked up at Dean, glad to see the man smiling.

“I do.”

“I didn’t mean to step on your toes with our other little girl. We don’t have to call her Kate if you don’t want to,” Cas said. Dean shook his head as he sat back down.

“No, I like Katherine, and I want to call her Kate. We just have to think up something for our other son.” 

“You pick. I’m sorry about Kate,” Cas apologized. Dean pursed his lips as he tried to think of all the names they had been considering.

“I like so many names though.” 

Cas chuckled and held his pup a little closer. “You liked Alexander the first time around. Want to stick with that?”

Dean went to their son’s incubator and looked down at him. The pup was awake, blue eyes open but staring at nothing in particular. It was more like he was listening.

“Hey, buddy. Daddy’s here.” He reached into the incubator and stroked the pup’s cheek. The pup turned towards him, whimpering.

“Can I pick him up?” He asked the nurse who was standing nearby.

“Yes, of course,” she replied. Dean lifted the door and gently picked the pup up. He cradled the boy in his arms.

“Hey, how’s daddy’s beautiful boy? You’re such a beautiful pup, you know that?” He cooed to his son as he returned to his chair. “How would you like to be called Alex? Alexander Christopher. A nice, strong name for my beautiful little boy.”

“That’s a beautiful name, shall I write it down on his card?” the nurse asked.

“Yes. This is Alexander Christopher. Cas is holding Evangeline Noelle. Add her name to her card as well. Pup number three is Aidan Matthew. The second girl is Katherine Grace.” He watched as she carefully wrote out each name on the cards that were attached to the incubators. She attached new bracelets with their names on them after that.

“When can I nurse them?” Cas asked.

“They’ve all been fed a bottle to help boost their strength, but we would especially like for you to try and nurse Aidan. He’s having trouble latching on and it would benefit him greatly to be close, smell your scent, hear your voice,” the nurse said.

“Oh, yes, I want that. I want him to grow stronger.”

The nurse took Evangeline back and put her into her incubator before carefully taking out Aidan. It was clear he was a great deal smaller than his brother and sisters. Cas took his son, careful not to pinch off his oxygen, and with help from the nurse got him to start sucking. 

“He’s really not latching on very well, but he’s trying,” Cas murmured as he stroked his son’s cheek. The pup’s head was so small it fit in his hand. “Oh…Dean…I can’t believe they’re here…”

“How are you feeling, sweetheart?” Dean had been handed a second pup, so now he was cuddling Alex and Kate.

“I hurt, but I don’t care. I want to be in here with my pups,” Cas said. He smiled as Aidan opened his eyes, blinking against the light. His eyes were the most beautiful shade of blue. He wondered if they would change like Molly and Ellie’s had. He really hoped they didn’t. The pup didn’t have a whole lot of hair but what he did have was dark like Cas’. Both their boys and Evangeline had dark hair. Only Kate was blonde.

“You were dead to the world after we got you into bed. You need to get as much rest as you can now.” Dean worried that Cas would stress himself out trying to stay awake and near the pups. He understood his mate’s need to be with their children, it was the reason at two in the morning he was still sitting here holding them, but Cas needed to heal and get better. The warning look his mate gave him told him not to try and order him back to bed.

“How about we get Aidan fed, give each of the pups some more cuddles and we’ll order some good food, have a very late dinner, and go to sleep?” he suggested.

Cas eyed him for a moment. He hadn’t eaten anything since that shake and a bit of beef broth Tess had ordered earlier, and he was pretty hungry. Actually, he was starving. He was torn.

“Look, they’re talking about Evie, Alex, and Kate being brought to your room later today. So they’ll be in there with us in just a few hours. They’re doing surprisingly well. We both need a few hours of sleep because Sam is going to bring the girls by tomorrow before he takes them to school so they can meet their brothers and sisters.”

Cas sighed and looked at Aidan again. “I’m not leaving this hospital until I have all of my pups with me.”

“And I know that already. But you still need to rest, and I do too because we’re in this together, babe,” Dean told him. Cas looked up at his mate and smiled.

“Yeah, I know. Just give me a bit longer? I’d like to at least try to nurse them all.”

“Sure, sweetheart.” Dean would give him anything he wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They're here!
> 
> Alexander Christopher
> 
> Katherine Grace
> 
> Aidan Matthew
> 
> Evangeline Noelle
> 
> Precious pups, and for sure one is an Alpha. Boys they won't be able to tell unless they get them tested or wait til they present, and they have no plans to test any of their pups. Now it will be a balance for Dean and Cas, to take care of the auto shops, deal with being mayor, and raise six pups, one of which you'll see has some special needs. But...they'll manage. I'm writing it after all, lol.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Enjoy the fluff of pups. :)


	51. Jealousy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam comes by the next morning, bringing Ellie and Molly to met their new siblings. Gabe comes with Henry, and everyone gets to meet Alex, Kate, and Evie. Little Aidan can't yet leave the NICU. Someone is a little jealous watching her papa trying to nurse one of the new pups. Now will start the fine ballet that comes with raising multiple small children. Let the dance begin!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yes, Sam is bringing the twins by so they can meet their new siblings, and Gabe brings Henry too. It's chaos, but that's parenthood for ya. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

An hour later Cas had nursed all four pups and they were all sound asleep in their incubators. The only one on oxygen was Aidan, and they didn’t foresee him coming off it for a while yet. Dean helped Cas into the wheelchair waiting outside the NICU and then wheeled his mate back to his room. Dean had no intentions of leaving his mate until everyone could safely come home, so after he got Cas back into bed, he called Alan to get him to bring them up some food. Sam and Bobby had gone, no doubt to go check on their own mates since Gabe had gone back to the house hours ago to check on Henry. The pup still woke during the night frightened and in need of consolation from one of his fathers, and Gabe wanted to be at the house when that happened. They were alone and Dean felt it was time to apologize to his mate but Cas was already talking.

“When did Doctor Sanders and Tess leave? I feel like Tess didn’t get enough praise for helping this time.” Cas pulled back the blankets that Dean had tucked around him and patted the bed for Dean to come lay with him. Dean took off his boots and jeans before crawling up into the bed.

“You had fallen asleep. I thanked her profusely and told her we’d be giving her an extra-large bonus for helping us this time. They left about forty minutes after you fell asleep. You…needed some stitches this time, internally, so Doctor Sanders did that while you were asleep. She said that otherwise, everything looked good. She’ll be back to give you another check up tomorrow afternoon. Tess said she’ll stop by to see you and the pups this week.” Dean lifted an arm and Cas moved closer so he could lay his head on his mate’s chest.

“Did you get weights? Heights?” he asked.

“I did. I don’t remember them all, but they’re written down here somewhere.” Dean pulled the blankets over them both. “How is your belly?”

“Tender. Same as when I had the girls. I’ll be ok in a week or so,” Cas murmured. He was sleepy, but his hunger was too intense to let him doze off.

“I wanted to apologize for earlier.” Dean stroked his fingers through his mate’s hair and waited for the man to look up at him.

“For my needing to get a sedative?”

“Yeah. I feel horrible about that. You know I want you, Cas. Forever. There is no one else for me but you. I just was worrying that if we had more pups you would resent me later, and that’s what I couldn’t stand the thought of. I’ve told you before, pups or not, I love you more than anything in the world and you are all I will ever want, but if you’re not happy with your body, or you blame me for it, it would destroy me. I just want you to be happy, sweetheart. I got a lecture from Doctor Sanders about that too. She put it in perspective for me. I’ll try to be more sensitive.” Dean kissed his mate’s forehead and held him a little tighter. 

“Oh, I remember that. I don’t blame you, Dean. This…” He motioned towards his still swollen belly and breasts. “Comes with the territory of having children. It just means that in a few weeks, when I’m feeling better and my belly doesn’t hurt anymore, I am going to have to work extra hard to get back in shape. I did it after the twins, I can do it after this. But don’t ever tell me you don’t want me giving you pups. You scared the hell out of me when you said that.”

“Wait, you want _more_?!” Dean gaped in utter shock. He had thought for sure his mate was just _done_.

“Ask me in a few years. I want to enjoy these pups for a while.”

Dean chuckled. “You said that after the girls.”

“And this time I mean it. Can we get them off to at least kindergarten before we have another one? Any more toddlers running around and I might lose my mind!” 

Dean kissed his mate softly. “I am in complete agreement. We’ll get through this batch first.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alan came with enough food for a small army and was invited to join them as they ate. Afterwards, Cas finally fell asleep, and Dean followed shortly after. They woke several times over the next few hours, every time a nurse came to check on Cas, and at eight the door was opening and Sam was pushing a stroller into the room. Dean sat up and rubbed his eyes.

“There are two little girls that are dying to see their daddy and papa,” Sam said as he unbuckled Ellie and lifted her out. He set her on the floor and she toddled over to the bed.

“Up, Daddy!” 

Dean grinned and leaned down to lift her up. He nuzzled against her cheek and she giggled.

“Were you a good girl for Auntie Jo last night? And for Uncle Sam this morning?”

She leaned over Dean to pat Cas’ cheek. His eyes fluttered for a moment before opening. He smiled at his pup.

“Hi, princess.” He caught her hand and kissed the palm.

“Papa!” she squealed. Dean had to hold her back from scrambling into Cas’ lap and she whined.

“No, Papa has a sore belly. He has an owie.” Dean rubbed Cas’ belly gently, showing their pup that she had to be careful.

“Papa, owie?” She looked up at Dean and he nodded. Her lower lip jutted out and her eyes filled with tears.

“Oh, Papa!” She leaned forward and carefully kissed Cas’ belly through the blankets.

“Thank you, princess. It feels better already.” He stroked his fingers through her hair, and she smiled at him.

“Papa!” Molly whined from where she sat in Sam’s arms. 

“Give her here.” Dean held out his arms and Sam handed the pup over. She immediately laid down on his chest and looked over at Cas with a smile. When she reached out one tiny hand, he took it, kissing the fingers one at a time.

“Were you a good girl for Uncle Sam?” he asked. She nodded.

“Good girl. I love you,” Cas told her.

“Lub ooo.” She smiled, and he could see a new tooth coming in.

“She’s getting another tooth.” He lifted her lip up to see if there were more.

“She’s actually getting four new ones. I know, she chomped down on my finger a few days ago,” Dean chuckled. A nurse walked in, pausing when she saw Dean and Cas in the bed with their pups.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt but Doctor Sanders’ associate, Doctor Nichols, is here and he gave the all clear for three of the pups to be brought in. Would you like me to bring them in?” 

“Yes, please. We want the girls to meet their siblings,” Dean said. The nurse smiled and nodded.

“We’ll have them in here shortly. They’ll need to be fed.”

“So, what time did you all get back in here last night?” Sam asked.

“Shoot, after three?” Dean wasn’t sure of the exact time. “Then we ate and went to sleep.”

“Maybe I should have brought the girls by tonight rather than this morning,” Sam frowned. Both his brother and Cas looked exhausted.

“Nah, I missed my little monkeys.” Dean rubbed his nose against Ellie’s, delighting in the way she erupted into giggles. It was music to his ears.

“And the pups are doing well?” Sam asked.

“Yes. I got to nurse Aidan last night, but he’s having trouble latching on. Someone mentioned possibly putting in a feeding tube until he’s stronger,” Cas replied. Ellie wormed her way down between her fathers and laid on her back as she babbled away in her nonsensical language. 

“Hey, princess. Papa had the pups. You’re going to be big sisters, you and Molly both.” Dean said. They both looked up him with matching wide eyes. 

“Pup pup?” Molly asked.

Dean nodded. “Four pup pups.” He held up four fingers, and she reached up to touch each one. He wasn’t sure if she was comprehending what he was telling her, but that was ok. The door opened and a team of nurses came in pushing the incubators ahead of them. 

“Oh!” Sam exclaimed as he hurried over to them. “And they all have names now?” 

“Yep. We worked that out last night.” Dean picked the girls up and set them on the floor before getting up from the bed and walking over to the nearest incubator. “This is Alexander Christopher.” He lifted the pup out of the box and settled him in Sam’s arms.

“Oh, he’s so beautiful. I didn’t really get a good look at any of them last night, except Kate. You are keeping her name, right?” Sam asked as he cuddled the pup close.

“Yes. Her name is Katherine Grace. Look, she’s the spitting image of Mom.” Dean picked his new daughter up and turned her so Sam could see her face.

“Oh, she really does look like mom! She’s gorgeous!” Sam felt the lump in his throat as he looked at his niece. “What did you decide for your other girl?”

“Evangeline Noelle.” Cas was swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. “I need to pee, but I’ll be right back.” He headed for the bathroom with Molly following after him.

“Papa!” she was calling out. Ellie was looking up at Dean and Sam. Dean knelt down in front of her and turned Kate so Ellie could see her.

“This is Kate, your sister. This is our pup.” 

“Pup pup?” she asked. Dean nodded. He stroked Kate’s cheek gently.

“Pretty pup pup.”

Ellie touched her sister’s cheek. “Awww….pup pup.”

“That’s cute.” Sam was busy recording the interaction with his phone. The door opened and Gabe came walking in with Henry.

“Hey, come here, meet your cousins.” Dean motioned to the little boy who hurried over to look down at the pup in his uncle’s arms.

“Puppy?” He cocked his head as he studied the pup.

“Yes, this is Kate.”

“Kit. Pitty Kit.” Henry smiled up at Dean. “Pitty pup.”

“Yes, she is pretty.” Dean smiled back at his nephew. Henry spotted his father, his little brow furrowing when he realized he was holding another pup.

“Dada has pup?” 

Sam knelt down in front of his son. “This is Uncle Dean and Uncle Cas’ pup, Alex.”

“Owlex?” 

Cas came out of the bathroom with Molly still following after him, begging to picked up.

“Honey, Papa can’t pick you up yet. I wish I could.” Cas looked at Dean in exasperation. Their daughter had tears in her eyes as she tugged at Cas’ gown.

“Papa!” she whined. 

“Lay down, babe.” Dean stood up and as soon as Cas was lying down, he handed Kate to him and scooped Molly up. He set her on the bed next to her papa.

“Now you can sit with Papa, but he has an owie in his belly, so be careful,” Dean told her. He did the same thing he’d done with Ellie and rubbed Cas’ belly gently. “Owie.”

Molly placed a hand over Dean’s. “Papa ok?”

“Be gentle,” Dean told her. She looked at him a moment later before looking at Cas who was trying to nurse a fussy Kate.

“Eat? Pup pup. Eat?” She got up on her knees and leaned over to watch the pup. “No, Papa, pup pup no.” She frowned and tried to pull the pup off his nipple but Dean gently pulled her hand away.

“It’s ok, Molly, the pup is hungry. Papa has to feed the pup.”

Molly glared at the pup and squirmed when Dean held her back.

“I’m thinking someone’s a bit jealous,” Dean chuckled as he picked Molly up. 

“I’ll take her.” Gabe held out his hands and Dean handed her over. Evangeline was starting to fuss so he went and picked her up.

After the new pups got introduced to their uncles, Sam and Gabe took Henry and the twins to daycare, leaving them alone with their new pups again. Cas fed each of them and Dean got them back into to their incubators. A nurse came to check on Cas and let him know that Aidan was awake and hungry.

“Am I going to produce enough milk for four pups?” Cas asked as he got up from the bed.

“That depends,” the nurse said.

“On?” 

“Well, I did a thesis paper on wolf generations post pack separation in college. As in, what adaptations have occurred since they left the plains and forests. The less time between when their ancestors left and now, the less changes have occurred. In ancient times an Omega could deliver a whole litter and would be able to produce enough milk for all of the pups. The more time that has passed, the less likely. Did you produce enough for your twins? I read that your first litter consisted of twins.” 

Cas nodded. “Yes, I had twins, and yes, I actually had so much milk that I had to pump quite often to get rid of the excess.”

“Then it sounds to me like you might have enough to feed four this time. What I would do is get a few ounces into each pup at each feeding, and then give them a few more ounces of formula. That way they’re all getting the antibodies they need to grow big and strong. For a while at least I would save a bit more of the milk for little Aidan. He needs it the most,” she said.

Cas nodded. That made sense. “Is there a way to find out my origins, or how long it’s been since my pack left the forest or plains?”

“Oh, there sure is. A simple blood test and research of your family name will tell you from which pack you originated. I actually have a list at home of all the original packs. There were twelve on this continent in the beginning, but they broke off into smaller packs over time, and then eventually they divided further and began creating the cities.” She turned to smile at Dean. “Your pack is actually one of the originals. They once controlled all of the forests of central North America, from Colorado clear to Kentucky, and from Minnesota to Oklahoma.”

“My maiden name was Novak,” Cas said. 

“I’ll look that one up. It sounds familiar, but it’s been awhile since I’ve looked,” she told him as he sat down in the wheelchair.

“Dean, you’ll be ok with the pups?” Cas asked his mate.

“We’ll be fine. I’m going to check some emails and contact Abby. I’ll just be working til you get back, but don’t rush. Aidan needs his papa.” Dean smiled at his mate and Cas smiled back.

“Alright. I’ll see you in a while.”

“I love you, babe.” Dean said.

“I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this chapter. The pack is bonding further, and a bit of jealousy is to be expected. When I brought my second daughter home, my older daughter was roughly the age Ellie and Molly were, and while she did dote on her new little sister, she was still jealous. Tried to get me to stop nursing, would smack the baby if I wasn't looking, and once, because little arms and legs flail a lot, chomped down on her baby sister's fingers. It took patience and understanding, and eventually she accepted her sister. My younger daughter got her back a year later though when she bit her older sister's finger, lol. Kids. At least they (mostly) get along now.


	52. Bonding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean takes time with their new pups so Cas can focus on Aidan. Their tiniest pup isn't cleared right away to leave the hospital, and when he is, he has to have round the clock nurse. Cas and Dean make the necessary adjustments to raising six pups, and the rest of the pack steps in to help, each one taking a day to stay with the new parents and help Cas maintain his sanity.
> 
> With pressure from the city, Dean decides it's time for another press conference, this time to discuss what is going on with his family, and why he hasn't been as available as people would like.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope everyone likes this chapter. Yes, Aidan's start to life was a rough one, and he has a long road ahead of him, but he's a Winchester, and Winchesters are fighters. For more information on what is going on with him, you can look here:
> 
> https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/bpd
> 
> and here:
> 
> http://kidshealth.org/en/parents/bpd.html
> 
> It is a result of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). In this case the pups are early, but beyond that, Aidan was never growing as quickly or as well as his siblings. He was born much smaller, and not breathing, so he was immediately put on oxygen. The BPD he has now is a result of that. He will eventually outgrow it, but he will have lasting issues, like asthma. His parents are in a position though to get him the best care available, and he will catch in weight and size to his siblings. Eventually he'll be a normal kid, like everyone else. So don't worry too much about little Aidan. Just let the sweet pup steal your heart, cause he is pretty darn precious.

Dean had dozens of work related emails, including several from the governor regarding various issues going on with the city, and he decided he could type faster if he used his laptop instead of his phone, so he dug it out of his bag and after settling on the bed, he started responding to them. Alex woke up and Dean recognized the fussing as that the pup needed a diaper change. Once he had his pup in a dry diaper he settled his son into his lap as he was sitting cross legged, and continued answering emails. When his phone rang a while later he knew it was Abby. She wanted to know what she could share in a press release. 

“Tell them we had four, two boys, two girls, and that Cas is healthy. You can tell them that three of the pups are doing well, but that there are some complications with one. No names, no details beyond that. We’ll do another press conference later, once Aidan is well enough to leave the hospital,” he told her. She hung up to get things ready, and he went over documents sent by the city council. When Kate and Evangeline woke up a while later he brought them over to the bed too and after changing their diapers and cuddling them, they settled down and he tucked them onto his lap along with Alex. That was where he was still sitting, responding to an email from his secretary, when Cas was wheeled back into the room.

“What are you doing?” Cas asked with a laugh. Dean looked up from the computer.

“Hmm? What?”

“What are you doing with the pups?” Cas stood up from the wheelchair and looked over at his husband who had all three pups in his lap.

 

We’re just working.” Dean replied with a grin. He looked down at his children, two of which were awake and staying very quiet as they looked around.

“I’m going to go pee, and then I hope you will make some space for me in the bed.” Cas grinned back at his mate.

“There’s always room for you, sweetheart,” Dean told him. 

The nurse did a quick check of the pups before leaving the room. Cas returned from the bathroom, and Dean moved over carefully.

“Need help getting up here?” he asked.

“No, I can manage.” Cas grunted as he got back in the bed. He sat up and leaned over a bit to touch the pup closest to him. 

“This is Evie?” 

Dean looked down to see which pup Cas was touching. “Yep.”

“She’s so alert. I can’t believe how quiet they are. They’re so good. So different than Ellie and Molly were. Did you get much work done with them?” Cas asked.

“Yep. I tackled most of my emails, spoke to Abby, and went over all the documents that were sent the last two days. I’m actually almost done,” Dean admitted.

“Mind if I take a nap? The kids will be alright, right? No one’s fussing for food yet?”

“Sweetheart, get as much sleep as you can. They’re doing fine. You’ll know the moment one of them is hungry.” Dean looked up from the computer at his mate. Cas smiled.

“Thank you. I am exhausted. I’m hungry too, but I’m really tired.”

“I can call down for your lunch,” Dean said.

“They gave me something to eat while I was in with Aidan. I stepped out for twenty minutes, ate, and then went back in, but I’m still hungry. Order something in about a half hour and just wake me up when it’s here.”

Cas smoothed a hand over Alex’s cheek once before lying back and closing his eyes. Dean pulled the covers over him as much as he could and smiled as he watched his mate sleep for a few minutes before looking down at his pups again.

“You have the best papa in the world, you know that? He loves you guys so much. Loves me too. Sometimes I wonder why, cause your daddy is a big old fool, but he’s a fool that loves each of you, and he loves your papa.” Dean spoke softly to his children as he let Evie wrap a tiny hand around the tip of his finger.

“Daddy’s going to protect you and keep you safe. I promise you all that,” he murmured. “I love you guys.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As it turned out, Aidan was going to be in the hospital a lot longer than first anticipated. A feeding tube was inserted and Cas pumped his son’s portion of milk to be fed to him rather than the formula. Alex, Kate, and Evie were all cleared for release, as well as Cas, but due to Dean’s pull with the hospital, they weren’t made to leave. They were simply moved to a suite designed for parents that had to stay when they had children in the NICU. Dean floated between the hospital, his office down at city hall, and the house, but every night he was back at the hospital with Cas, and every morning he was in the nursery holding Aidan. The pup’s lungs had been underdeveloped at birth and he narrowly avoided having to be intubated. He was finally starting to grow and after two weeks the feeding tube was removed. A week after that he was moved to the regular nursery. The hospital was loathe to release him yet and Dean suspected it was because they feared a lawsuit from the Winchesters if something happened to the pup because they let him go too soon. He was still on oxygen, and Doctor Nichols had told them he might need to be on it for at least a month, even after he went home. 

At birth the pup had weighed a whopping two pounds, eleven ounces. Two weeks after the birth he was a little over three and a half pounds. He was alert and receptive whenever one of his fathers came to hold him, and not long after they were able to get him to start latching on better he started getting excited at feeding time. Dean was just glad to see his pup getting stronger, and his mate content. Cas was moving around better and already bleeding less. Doctor Sanders had come to the hospital to do the Omega’s exams because she knew there was no getting him to leave his son, and Dean thankfully missed that first one. He was still traumatized from the first visit Cas had after the twins were born. Cas had lost twenty pounds already, and was glad for it. The second week of April, Aidan was cleared to go home. 

Dean had been busy while his mate had been pregnant. He’d redesigned the nursery, adding four new cribs and enough furniture to hold the clothing and diapers for four pups while moving everything of the girls’ across the hall to a room next to the nursery. Everything for the twins’ room was done in shades of yellow and purple, and Sam’s friend Lauren had returned to do a beautiful flower mural on the wall. Now that they were able to take all four pups home, he was especially glad that he had the nursery ready. 

They had agreed that for the first few months the pups would stay in their room with them, in bassinets, just like they’d done with Molly and Ellie, but first Dean had to go and buy two more bassinets. Once they had them in the bedroom, they began setting up a routine. In the hospital they had started one with the first three pups, and soon Aidan fell into it with his siblings. It then became a matter of getting Molly and Ellie to cooperate. 

The new pups were up by six every morning without fail. It usually started with either Alex or Kate waking up hungry, and Evie soon followed. Aidan was almost always the last one to wake. By seven, just as Cas was almost done feeding them, they could hear the twins waking up on the monitor. Dean would change each of the newborns’ diapers before putting them back in their bassinets, but would leave the last change up to his mate so he could go tend to Molly and Ellie. Once he had the girls in clean diapers and dressed, he would bring them back to his and Cas’ room, so they could see Cas and interact with whatever pups were still awake. Once Cas had the last pup fed and back to sleep, he and Dean would take the girls downstairs to get them fed before Dean would drive them over to Sam and Gabe’s so they could go to daycare with Henry. Every day of the week they had a different member of the pack stay to help Cas so he wasn’t too stressed out. Charlie joined in and would spend Saturday nights at the house helping all the way through until Sunday night with chores like laundry, dishes, and grocery shopping. 

Dean went to work at city hall every day, and whenever he felt his mate’s stress levels going up, he called home to check on him. If Cas was too overwhelmed, he would take his work home with him and go take care of his mate and pups. It wasn’t easy by any means, but they were managing. Two months after the pups came home Abby brought up the press conference Dean had promised. He had kept his family out of the spotlight so much that city was starting to feel like maybe he didn’t really want to share himself, and that he didn’t see himself as equal like he had promised he did. It was something he needed to nip now so if he decided to run again later, his chances would be good. Over dinner one night he brought it up to Cas.

“So you want to bring the pups in front of the cameras or just you and me?” Cas asked.

“I was thinking just you and me, but we can bring the pups and leave them in the back room with say, Ellen and Charlie? And put a live feed camera back there. Then they can see the pups, but the noises won’t overwhelm them, and we won’t be risking them as much as far as illnesses go.” 

Cas swirled spaghetti around on his plate as he thought about that. He had made dinner tonight and with homemade sauce that Dean had canned himself from their garden. It was delicious. He’d made the meatballs himself though and was fairly impressed with how well they had come out. He cut one in half and popped some in his mouth along with the noodles.

“As long as no one but those in our pack touch them. You need to make absolutely sure no one touches them. Aidan is fragile, and I will tear apart anyone that endangers him.” 

Dean could feel his mate’s protectiveness towards their pups, and he understood where he was coming from. Aidan was still having problems keeping his oxygen levels up, and they were thinking the pup might end up having asthma when he got older. He’d already been diagnosed with BPD and they were loathe to let it be aggravated, but stupid people couldn’t keep their hands off of him. If the pup got scared, he began to wheeze and cough, and that meant a trip to the hospital. He’d been back three times before they’d hired on a private nurse who was staying on at the house until Aidan was strong enough that he wasn’t having any more episodes that would scare his fathers silly. 

“I will have Abby clear that ahead of time, and I’ll amp up the security too,” Dean promised.

“When are we doing this?” Cas asked.

“I’d like to do it next week, if you’re feeling up to it. I’m getting word that the people are beginning to think that I hold myself above them and think that my family is better because I’m not opening up like I did in the past. I need to reassure them that that’s not the case. I need them to know that Aidan has issues, and we’ve been taking care of our son because our pups, _all_ of our pups, they’re our first priority.”

“Fine. Let me know the day, and I’ll make sure all of the pups are ready to go,” Cas said. Dean smiled and leaned over to kiss his mate.

“You’re amazing, you know that?”

Cas smiled. “Me? Why?”

“For putting up with all of this. I constantly worry that I’m neglecting you, or neglecting our pups. You always make me feel better though, like I’m important. I need that more than I ever realized,” Dean admitted. Cas brought a hand up and placed his palm gently against his mate’s cheek.

“Darling, you are the most important person in the world to me, excluding our children of course. You’re a busy man, and I understand that. I am proud of you and I know that in the moments when I do feel overwhelmed, you are here to help me. I think we’re doing alright, and that as long as Aidan continues to get stronger, we’ll continue to be alright. But you are right, we do need to show our city that we are not only a team, but that everyone that lives here and votes for you…and even the ones that didn’t vote for you, they too are our family. So we’ll put on our best smiles and we’ll go out and talk to them. Go ahead and call Abby, tell her we’re ready for that conference.”

“I love you,” Dean told him.

“And I love you.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“No one, and I mean no one, outside of my pack is to touch my pups, make sure everyone keeps their distance. Got it?” Dean looked around at his security team. All of the men nodded. “Good. Now let’s go inside.”

They had arrived by limo, provided by the city council, and despite how big it was, it was packed. Ellen, Charlie, Jo, Sam, and Chuck had ridden in with Cas and Dean, not to mention three of their security team, Aidan’s nurse, and all six pups. Others had ridden in the caravan and were already out of the other trucks and waiting when Dean stepped out of the limo. Now he was directing his family into the building and trying not to let his pups be affected by the media waiting on the sidewalks to catch a glimpse of them. Once they were inside and the doors were closed, he relaxed a bit. It was quiet inside. Abby spotted them and came over.

“I talked to everyone, made it clear that absolutely no one is to touch your pups, and I will escort you to the green room myself. It’s this way.” 

They followed her down the hall, single file. Dean had two carriers, Sam had the other two. It had been recommended that they bring the twins with, to show them as a family, so Ellen was holding Molly and Charlie had Ellie. Once they were in the green room, Dean set his carriers down. Sam did the same. Cas helped the girls take off their jackets and pulled toys out of one of the diaper bags he’d been carrying. Ellen and Charlie sat down with the girls, and Cas made sure the pups both had toys and bottles to entertain them.

“Ok, so the video is actually going to start here in a few minutes. We want to capture the whole family, meaning you, Cas, and all six kids, so relax, cuddle with your pups, just be yourselves. When the light turns red, you’ll know they’re recording. They just need a few minutes. It’s to back up your words that you are a team working together to raise your pups,” Abby explained.

“Yeah, ok.” Dean looked down at his pups. Aidan was awake. So was Kate. He took out Kate first and once Cas was sitting, he handed her to him. Abby moved her hand slightly and when Dean glanced up, he saw the light was red. He reached into Aidan’s carrier and took the pup out.

“So, what are their names?” Abby asked. Dean cradled his son in the crook of his arm and smiled down at him.

“Well, this is Aidan Matthew. Cas is holding Katherine Grace.”

Sam picked up Evie and settled the sleeping pup in the crook of Dean’s free arm before picking up Alex and putting him in Cas’.

“This here is Evangeline Noelle, and Cas is holding Alexander Christopher,” Dean said.

“They’re absolutely beautiful. Who was the first born?” She asked.

“Alex came first, then Kate. Aidan here was third. He had some complications at birth and was the reason we stayed so long in the hospital. Evie was the last pup.”

Abby frowned. “I hadn’t realized there were complications at birth. Is he still having issues?”

“Unfortunately, yes. Aidan has trouble breathing and has a ’round-the-clock nurse because of that. It’s why we haven’t done this press conference sooner. Our son’s health came first. We weren’t neglecting the good people of this city, we were just so scared that we would lose our son.” Cas looked over at Dean who gave a small smile and nodded.

Abby stepped closer and looked down at each of the pups. “Wow, they’re all so beautiful. I know I said that when Molly and Gabriella were born, but you two really make some beautiful pups.”

Everyone in the room chuckled softly.

“This one, this is Evangeline?” She pointed to the girl in Dean’s arms.

“Yes, this is Evie,” he replied.

“She looks so much like Cas it’s amazing. And look at all of that hair!” Evie had grown quite a bit of hair since her birth, and without a little baby oil being added to smooth it down it was just as unruly as her papa’s was.

Cas snickered as he looked over at Evie. He’d tried several times to get a tiny pink bow into her hair but it was too soft and it wouldn’t stay. He’d instead settled on a small, pink, lace headband. She looked like a little angel in it. Kate had a matching one in purple. 

“And you have a real blondie this time. I know either Molly or Gabriella was blonde, but not this blonde,” Abby said as she looked down at Kate. 

“She has my mother’s hair. We’re really hoping it stays that blonde. She looks just like my mother too,” Dean said proudly.

By that time Aidan and Kate had fallen asleep too and with help from Sam and Ellen, they got all of the pups back into their carriers. Cas had pumped and had four bottles of milk in a warming bag in case the pups got hungry. It helped him to fit into his dress shirt better without his breasts painfully plump with milk. Abby directed Cas and Dean out to the stage where a large crowd of reporters was waiting. Cameras immediately began flashing. Dean found his mate’s hand and threaded their fingers together. 

“When does this start?” Cas whispered.

“Like, two minutes,” Dean whispered back. Cas took a deep breath and gave his husband’s hand a squeeze. By this point he was used to being in the spotlight. It didn’t mean he liked it though. He was just grateful his mate let him take control of answering questions when he felt the need to be the one to answer them. Hopefully this time around the questions wouldn’t be that invasive.

When Abby motioned to them, Dean nodded and turned to the crowd. 

“We’ll begin taking questions now. We’re doing this a little differently this time, and we appreciate your cooperation. We have assigned numbers. If your number is called, you can ask your question. You must realize that with as many of you as there are, we will not be able to answer every single one, and we will _not_ answer anything that either of us find to be overly personal. With that being said, we’ll take a question from number twelve.” 

Chairs had been provided this time and a woman with short, dark hair stood up.

“Mayor, how has your work at city hall been affected by having four new pups?”

“It really hasn’t all that much. I do everything that is expected of me, and attend all of the city planning meetings that I am required to attend. I have already reduced the city’s deficit by thirteen percent just by improving The District, and that’s since I was elected mayor. Before that I had lowered it already by twenty seven percent. I am fully capable of being a father, a husband and a mayor, and I’m able to do it all at the same time.”

There were a few snickers in the crowd. Cas looked over at his mate and Dean nodded, telling him to pick the next number. They had a paper in front of them that they were marking off numbers as they were selected so that no one got to ask two questions. It wasn’t fair to the others.

“Number fifty eight,” Cas called out. An older man in a tacky plaid suit stood up.

“Is the city paying for the medical care that your pup requires?”

“Absolutely not. We pay for all of the medical care for our children. Dean and I would never use anything meant for the city on ourselves. It’s unethical, and we wouldn’t do anything to negatively impact the budget. We have plenty of money from Dean’s business, and that is how we are paying for our son’s medical care.” 

Dean felt the flash of anger his mate was experiencing, and he gave his Omega’s hand a gentle squeeze. Cas looked over at him for a moment. There was a look in his eyes that told Dean his mate had realized how close he’d come to snapping at that question. They’d talked about this. The media lived for drama, and they liked to try and raise their hackles. They just had to be mature enough not to rise to the bait.

“Number four,” Dean announced.

“What kind of additional medical care does your pup need?”

“Aidan was born not breathing. He weighed barely more than three pounds, and it took several minutes of his doctor working on him before he finally took his first breath. He was just taken off oxygen a few weeks ago. It had been estimated that he would only need it for the first month after he came home, but his lung issues persisted and he continued to need it, especially at night. He is still having some problems breathing when he gets excited or frightened. Shortly after his birth he was diagnosed with BPD, Bronchopulmonary dysplasia. That means his lungs did not form right, and they’re still not growing right. Now, he may grow out of it, or he may not. It is likely that he will deal with asthma for the rest of his life as a result. Because of this we hired a private nurse. She stays close to monitor his oxygen levels and to provide any additional care that he might need,” Dean replied.

“Number sixty three,” Cas said.

“Has the birth of these pups had any kind of negative effect on your revitalization plans in The District?”

“Not at all. The last of the apartment buildings are now finished being remodeled, a park and a community garden was added along with cameras on every street corner. By this time next year there will be a fully functional police station in the center of The District, and nineteen new businesses have leases and of those nineteen, twelve are already open. Crime has dropped from roughly ninety three percent down to two percent since we began making the necessary changes. That’s phenomenal. Crime has never dropped so fast and so low anywhere else in the country. We hope this kind of change will continue and that Omegas everywhere will someday know the same peace, safety, and equality that we are striving to achieve here,” Dean replied.

Questions continued in much the same fashion, and for the next hour they answered as many as they could. A few Chuck had stepped in and reminded the reporters they were inappropriate in asking, like whether Dean and Cas still had an active sex life with six small pups in the house, and when was Cas’ next heat. Cas was still recovering and Dean wasn’t rushing his mate for something as selfish as sex, but no one needed to know that. As they answered questions, pictures of their pups in their carriers flashed across the screens behind them, and they seemed to linger the longest on little Aidan. Apparently his nurse had slipped his nasal cannula back in place and he was sleeping peacefully in his carrier. When they were finished, they started walking back to the green room.

“Hey, babe?” Dean said as he turned to look at his mate.

“Yes?” 

“I think we should take the pups back to the forest, maybe around June. Just you, me, and the pups. And Donna, if Aidan still needs to be monitored. I’d like to find out what the pack there does in the case of pups like Aidan. I know in ancient times they would abandon a pup if it was weak at birth. It would hold back the pack and endanger it, but they don’t do that anymore. I’m sure Reeva would have some tips.” Dean also wanted to learn what they had done with Luke. Since the pack didn’t believe in technology, there were no phones or internet. He would have to go in person to talk to them.

“If Aidan’s doctor gives the ok, we can go. I don’t want to endanger his health,” Cas replied. Dean stopped his mate just outside the door to the green room and pulled him close.

“Thank you. I know Reeva is going to fuss over the pups, and so will many of the Omegas. Sometimes I wish we’d never left. Life is simpler in the forests than it is in the cities, but had my pack never left, I’d have never found you. I’m glad I finally did though.”

Cas smiled and wrapped his arms around his mate.

“I’m glad you did find me. This life I have now is better than anything I could have ever imagined for myself. Come on, darling. Let’s take our family home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this chapter. The pups are precious, and they're getting big fast.


	53. An Unexpected Visitor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Dean decide it's time to take their pups and head back to the forest; to Mordecai, Reeva, and the rest of the pack. During the week, while getting things ready for the trip, Cas has an unexpected visitor show up at the house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I say that the pack continues to grow, I don't always mean just with pups. It also means welcoming others into the fold. Of course pups usually come into play at some point, but it's more than just that. I do hope that you enjoy this chapter.

Life continued on as usual for the Winchesters. Cas had started his online courses, completing the work around his pups’ feeding schedule and while still trying to give his mate the attention he needed. When June rolled around Dean brought up the topic of traveling out to see the pack again. He’d already sent Alan out a few days earlier to make sure it would be alright to come and they were expected. The doctor had cleared Aidan for the drive. Donna was still in their employment and they had started to think that she might be around for a while since Aidan’s lungs weren’t healing as well as they would have liked. It was a Saturday afternoon and they were sitting on the back deck, all together as a family watching as the older pups tore around the yard with Henry and the dogs while the little ones sat in their bouncy chairs. The pups were all growing so fast and Dean loved days when he had nothing important to do except sit with his family. He and Cas were enjoying ice cold glasses of sun tea while Donna sat a few feet away reading a trashy romance novel, a guilty pleasure she had picked up from Cas. Sam and Gabe had a party to attend to which was why they had Henry for the day. They didn’t mind though, they loved the boy.

“Hey, honey?” Dean looked over at his mate. He could feel the contentment that his Omega was filled with. Cas smiled at him.

“Yes?”

“I was thinking we could go see the pack next Saturday. We have the all clear from the pediatrician, and Donna’s coming with. And I got permission to come. I thought maybe we could make a day of it? Maybe even a weekend since the cabin is there.” Dean said. Cas studied his face for a moment before nodding.

“I think that would be good, for us and for the pups. I will pack this week, so we don’t forget anything.” 

Dean smiled and leaned over to kiss his mate’s cheek. “Thank you, sweetheart. This means a lot to me. Perhaps Mordecai can tell us more about your old pack too. They have pacts with all of the originals, to maintain peace. They’ll know about Preston’s.”

After that first talk with Cas’ nurse, whose name they had learned was Beth, she had spoken to Doctor Nichols to arrange for a blood test for Cas, to see if they could find where his origins had started. A study of the name Novak hadn’t turned much up, but his blood tests revealed that he had actually come from the Preston pack, which was based in Canada and interacted frequently with the Winchester pack, and much to Dean and Cas’ surprise they learned that the Prestons and Winchesters often mated with one another, and many true mates came out of the mixture between the two packs. A ton of research on Cas’ part had revealed that his mother’s grandfather had been the one to leave their northern forests and move to the cities, so his link was stronger to his roots than even Dean’s. He hoped Mordecai would be able to shed some light on his family’s history. 

The week passed by faster than they expected, but mostly because they were both so busy. With help from Ellen, who came to assist Cas that Thursday, he got the diaper bags packed. They carried three now, one for the twins, one for three of the pups, and one for Aidan. It contained an oxygen tank and a customized first aid kit in case of emergencies. Among other things, it turned out Aidan had severe allergies to the most random of things, such as soaps, cleaning solutions, and now that they were being introduced to pup cereals, those too. Dean had to go out and find strictly organic products, and all cleaning agents had to be plant based, not chemical based. They were all getting used to the house constantly smelling like either thyme, lavender, or lemongrass. Cas was already making his own detergent and soaps, but he took it a step further and learned how to make shampoos as well. That went over well with the extended family as well, and he was actually making extra money on the side with his homemade products. It wasn’t that he needed the money, it was more that he was helping out family and friends while having the products he used on his pups pay for themselves. He and Dean used the items as well and Dean’s hair was so incredibly soft when he used the natural shampoo, and Cas loved it when he smelled like mint and rosemary. 

One weekend a month was spent canning. Dean grew everything from tomatoes to squash, blueberries to peaches, and when the family in the house behind theirs moved away, he bought the property. The house they decided to leave standing for now and use it as a guest house, but the yard was huge, and after fixing the fencing to surround both properties, Cas designed three new gardens that would help feed their growing family. One garden was strictly for edible flowers and herbs, and Cas tended to that one personally. He also kept an herb garden in his little studio off the kitchen so that he’d have access to fresh herbs year round. The one outdoors he would dry the herbs and use them for baking, or to add to soaps, teas, and cleaning products. The edible flowers he added to salads, soups, and teas. Dean had a very large vegetable garden where he grew everything from beans to potatoes to beets, and he loved working in it. When he didn’t have the time either Cas or another member of the pack would go out there to weed and water it. 

The third garden was where Dean grew his berries, cherries, and a stand of fruit trees that he had paid extra to purchase already old enough to produce fruit. They hadn’t produced much yet, but they were looking forward to when they did. There were different kinds of apple trees, plum trees, peach trees, pear trees, persimmon trees, and apricot trees. The kept everything organic, and Cas had hired a gardening company to come in once a month and check for pests that might destroy their crops. They’d already had a problem with grubs in the soil before they started seriously gardening, but the men they hired took care of the problem pretty quickly. 

Near the house Dean had built a clubhouse for the kids, complete with swings, a slide, and a picnic table. Molly and Ellie loved to get pushed on the swings and go down the slides, but mostly they played with their toys under the slides in the shade. That Thursday, Ellen had gone to run a few errands, including picking up a new inhaler for Aidan, while Cas finished up some homework and got some laundry into the washer. The only pup awake at that moment was Evie, so he had her in the sling Dean had bought for him and she was gurgling happily from her spot against his chest. When the intercom on the wall crackled and came to life he looked up and waited to see if the security staff was going to say something.

“Mr. Winchester?” A voice finally asked. Dean had installed intercoms as part of the security system so they could communicate with the staff patrolling outside. Cas walked over and clicked the button so he could see who was talking to him as well as hear him.

“Yes?”

“You have a visitor, sir, one not cleared to enter the house. A Samandriel Novak.” 

Cas felt a mixture of excitement and trepidation knowing his brother had just randomly shown up. Wariness overrode everything though. He was home alone with four helpless pups. Ellen wouldn’t be back for at least an hour.

“Did he say why he is here?” He finally asked.

“He says he came with presents for your pups.”

Cas frowned. Why now? Rachael and Michael had sent presents for the kids shortly after their births. Granted Alfie wasn’t wealthy, he hadn’t expected anything at all from him. For him to randomly show up on a Thursday afternoon, it was unusual, to say the least. He hadn’t come to the house before. 

“Give me just a moment,” he said into the intercom. 

“Yes, sir,” the guard replied. Cas grabbed his phone and shot off a quick text to Dean.

Cas: My brother Alfie (Samandriel) just randomly showed up and wants to come inside. I am here alone. I will let him in, but I wanted to let you know he came over.

It didn’t take Dean long to respond. No matter where Dean was, he always replied quickly.

Dean: Ok, what is he even doing at the house? And randomly on a Thursday?

Cas: Security says he came with gifts for the pups.

Dean: Where is Ellen?

Cas: Running errands. I needed a new inhaler for Aidan.

Dean: Do you trust him?

Cas: Honestly? He’s my brother, but I don’t know him. I don't know any of my brothers besides Gabe. So I can’t say whether I do or not.

Dean: What does your gut tell you?

Cas: That I’m home alone with four helpless pups. Sure security is here, but it’s not the same.

Dean: Then if he’s seriously there to visit, he can wait ten minutes. I am on my way.

Cas: I’m not pulling you away from anything, am I?

Dean: No, sweetheart. I am literally going over some proposals, and a plan for energy savings in The District. I’ll explain when I get home. I’m already in the car and pulling out of the parking lot. Be there shortly. I love you.

Cas: I love you too.

Cas looked down at Evie who was sucking on three of her fingers as she looked up at him. She smiled when they made eye contact.

“Hi, sweet girl. Papa loves you,” he told her. She was such a happy pup. He pressed the button the intercom again.

“Alright, Dean will be here in just a few minutes. Inform him that once my husband arrives, he can come inside. It will only be about ten minutes.”

“I will tell him, sir.” 

Cas left the laundry room and headed down to the kitchen to make up a tray of meats and cheeses for their guest. When Dean walked in the house with Alfie fifteen minutes later they were chatting amicably about his brother’s job.

“Sorry to just show up, but I didn’t have your number. I would have come sooner, like right after the pups were born, but I literally work like sixty hours a week and I’m on vacation this week, so I thought I’d stop by. And I wanted to get some nice things for your pups.” Alfie held up the bags he was holding.

“Thank you. I’m sorry I didn’t just let you in. I know I have security here but some things are hard to get over, and I’m a bit nervous when people show up and I’m home alone,” Cas explained. He set the tray down on the island. “Please, help yourselves. Would you like something to drink? Water? Tea? Soda?”

“Do you have unsweet tea by chance?” Alfie asked.

“Yes I do. I’ll get us both some. Dean?” Cas looked at his mate who nodded.

“Yeah, a glass for me too. Who do you have there?” Dean motioned to the pup in the sling on his mate’s chest.

“Oh, the only one awake, Evie. She tends not to nap as long as the others.”

Dean walked over and lifted his pup out of the sling. He carried her over to where Alfie sat at the island munching on cheese and crackers.

“This is your niece Evangeline Noelle. We call her Evie.” 

Alfie smiled at the pup and she smiled back. “She’s beautiful. She looks just like Cas. Did she have this much hair when she was born?” Alfie asked as he pushed a lock out of the pup’s face.

“No, actually she had the least amount. Her hair is now down to her neck and it’s just as crazy as Cas’,” Dean replied with a chuckle.

“Poor kid.” Cas laughed. He set the glasses of tea on the island and sat down with them. The monitor he had tucked into his sling came to life with the sound of a crying pup.

“Here, take Evie. I’ll go get them.” Dean handed the pup back to Cas and got up to go find out who was crying upstairs.

“So, how hard is it with six pups?” Alfie asked as Cas tucked Evie back into the sling.

“It’s eventful, that’s for sure. We run the house like a fine tuned machine. It’s how we avoid the chaos. Naps are my chance to get things done. I put the pups down and try to get stuff done before they wake up. But…I spend most days with Evie attached like this because she never sleeps more than a half hour at a time.” 

“Hey, Papa, look who’s awake…” Dean was carrying two pups in his arms and a third one was in another sling across his chest as he walked into the kitchen.

“Oh, why are you carrying all of them? They’re heavy!” Cas hurried over and plucked Aidan from his arms. The pup was fussy, and he knew his son was hungry.

“Excuse me for a couple of minutes so I can get him fed.” Cas took Evie and Aidan into the den, leaving Dean with Kate and Alex. He’d changed their diapers, so for the moment they were calm. He had maybe twenty minutes before they started fussing. 

“So, here is your niece, Katherine Grace. We call her Kate.” Dean turned the pup around and she looked up at Alfie with large, blue eyes.

“Oh, she is gorgeous! Where did the blonde hair come from? Even Gabe’s was never this blonde!” Alfie let the pup grab onto his finger and she gave a big, gummy smile.

“She is a clone for my mother, Mary. Her hair hasn’t changed at all since she was born. She just has a whole lot more of it,” Dean chuckled. “You want to hold her?”

Alfie smiled and nodded. “Sure.” He took the pup and settled her on his knee while Dean took Alex from the sling.

“And this is Alexander Christopher.” Dean set the pup on his lap and smiled down at his son. 

“Dang, he looks just like Cas!” Alfie was shocked by how much the boy looked like his brother.

“You should see him when he squints his eyes. It’s like a tiny version of Cas. It’s adorable,” Dean laughed. Alex tilted his head back to look up at his father so Dean blew him a kiss. The pup smiled happily.

“They’re all pretty happy, huh?” Alfie let Kate grab his finger, and she was shaking it around as she gurgled.

“They really are, even Aidan. Once Cas is done with those two I’ll introduce you to him. He’s such a sweet baby. Unfortunately though, I have to hold him. He has a lot of issues,” Dean explained. Alfie frowned.

“I saw your press conference. I’ll admit, I looked up BPD. It worries me knowing he’s going to have issues with that his entire life.”

“That’s not the only problem though, he has food, chemical, preservative, and dye allergies too. Cas makes all of our laundry and body soaps, and now he makes our shampoos too. And I grow our own fruits and vegetables and can them myself. Aidan doesn’t have many reactions as a result. His pediatrician says he should outgrow most of the allergies, but he’ll always have breathing issues. He’s on breathing treatments, an inhaler, and when necessary, oxygen.” Dean tuned in for a moment to his mate and felt Cas’ contentment as he nursed one of the pups. 

“How bad are his allergies?” Alfie asked.

“Mostly he breaks out in painful rashes, and then we have to do oatmeal baths,” Dean replied.

“Poor kid. I really hope he outgrows that.” Alfie felt bad for his little nephew. The pup had already had a difficult start to life, and now he was battling all of this too.

“The other pups don’t have issues, do they?”

“Kate has a mild allergy to anything with soy, and Ellie has an allergy to red dye number five. So no fake fruit juices for her,” Dean explained.

“I, uh, wanted to let Cas know that I’m about to be a dad too. It was part of why I came over. Jude is pregnant. We are very excited,” Alfie smiled brightly. Dean could smell his happiness in his scent.

“Wow, congratulations! Jude is your mate, right? I don’t think you brought him to the wedding.”

“No, he was afraid to come. Some of my brothers scare him. He’s an Omega.” The way Alfie said that told Dean it was Luke and Bart that Jude was afraid of.

“So, how far along is he?”

“Six months. It’s our first, and I can’t wait.” Alfie’s smile grew even wider. “We’re expecting a little girl. It’s not an Alpha either. We’re kind of glad for that.”

“Fantastic news! I know I’m happy for you, and Cas will be too.”

“Happy about what?” Cas walked back in the room with Aidan in his arms.

“Where’s Evie?” Dean asked.

“In her swing. She’s asleep, finally,” Cas said with a soft laugh as he sat down at the island again.

“Tell him your news,” Dean motioned to Alfie. The Beta smiled wide at his brother.

“My mate, Jude, he’s pregnant. We’re expecting our first pup at the beginning of September. A little girl.”

Cas gasped. “Really? Oh! I’m so happy for you!” He got up and went around the counter to hug his brother. “You will bring your mate by, yes? I would love to meet him. I have so much stuff I can give you, too! Clothes and blankets and other stuff too!”

Alfie laughed and nodded. “Sure, I’ll bring him by. He’s a little wary around Alphas, that’s why I didn’t bring him to the wedding. He’s scared of Luke and Bart. But I think that given time, he’d like Gabe, and he’d like Dean.” He looked down at the pup sleeping in Cas’ arms. “So this is Aidan, eh? He’s beautiful.”

Cas cradled his pup closer and smiled. “Thank you. He’s such a sweet baby. And he’s finally starting to catch up to Alex and the girls. He hasn’t needed oxygen all week. I’m so glad for that!”

“Dean was telling me about his condition and his allergies. I do hope he outgrows them.” Alfie smiled at the little pup. He was definitely smaller than the others but plump, and his little cheeks were rosy. 

“He has already outgrown a couple of them. We couldn’t feed him rice cereal at first. Now we can. And he tried apple juice for the second time yesterday and didn’t break out in a rash like last time. I called the doctor to tell him, and he says that’s a good sign." He looked up at his younger brother. “Do you have a name picked out for your pup?”

Alfie nodded. “Dahlia Marie. Jude chose it because those are his favorite flowers. Hang on a sec.” He dug his phone out of his pocket and went into his gallery. The picture he’d taken of his mate just that morning came up, and he held out the phone so Cas and Dean both could see. 

“Wow, he’s awful big for only six months along, and with just one pup,” Dean remarked.

“Doctor says the pup should top off around nine pounds. Jude’s not exactly happy about that, but it’s not like we can do anything about it. I’m just trying to keep him calm and content. He’s stressed out at the moment. His job just let him go and of course he’s having trouble finding a new job. Outside of The District, no one wants to hire him,” Alfie told them. 

“What does he do for a living?” Cas asked.

“He was waiting tables at a diner near our house, but the diner isn’t doing so well, so they had to cut staff. It had nothing to do with him being an Omega. They just had to let go half the staff, and they went with tenure. Those that had been there the longest got to stay. He worked there four years. The three ladies they kept on were all there seven or more,” Alfie replied.

“Did he go to school?” Dean was curious as to whether Jude had earned any kind of college degree like Cas had.

“Uh, no. I haven’t been able to come up with that kind of money. I would send him if I could, but I’m barely making enough as it is now. He has a job interview though, and if he gets the job we’ll be able to afford to put the pup in the Omega daycare down in The District. We hear good things about it,” Alfie said.

“You know, we’re setting up scholarships for Omegas, so they can earn college degrees and bring in more money for their families. I’ll get you the information. I want you to look into it, and have him apply. If he gets in, Cas and me, we’ll help you guys out until he graduates and can land a job where he’s really contributing financially. Does he know what he would get a degree in?” Dean asked.

“He’s always wanted to be a nurse. That was his dream growing up, then he presented as an Omega. We’d been dating for a few years by that point and his orientation didn’t mean anything to me. I loved him already. So his father transferred his guardianship to me, and I claimed him. I think we were fifteen? Dad had already kicked me out, and I was living with them. I got the job I have now and I’ve been working it ever since,” Alfie explained.

“So you’ve been with your mate how long now?” Dean was shocked. Alfie looked like he was maybe fifteen himself!

Alfie squinted and lifted his eyes up to the ceiling as he counted. “Shoot, we’ve been together since I was thirteen, and I’m thirty six now…so, twenty three years?”

“Dang, you do not look thirty six. And neither does he.” Dean looked over at his mate who nodded in agreement. Cas didn’t look almost forty two though. He looked maybe ten years younger than that. The Novaks apparently had good genes. Or maybe it was the Prestons. 

Kate began to fuss, so Dean motioned for Alfie to help him and Cas into the den. Once there, Cas settled Aidan in one of the swings and accepted Kate. He tossed a throw blanket over the pup before he started feeding her, and Alfie backtracked to the kitchen to get the bags he had brought.

“You know, you didn’t have to bring anything,” Dean told him as he bounced Alex a bit. The pup was hungry and impatiently waiting his turn. Alfie shrugged and reached into one of the bags and pulled out a gift wrapped box.

“I know, but I wanted to show you both that though I am a Novak by name, I am not one otherwise. I despise our old pack. I refused to ever take Jude around our father. I won’t take him around most of the Alphas in the family, at least not the ones that think and act like him. I do what I can to keep my mate safe. Jude is my world. This is an act of good faith. To let you both know that I do care, about you and your pups. I’m hoping Dahlia will get to grow up knowing her cousins. It’s just Jude and me now, his dad passed away two years ago.”

“Of course. I hold no grudge against you, Alfie. You and your mate, and your pup, you’re welcome in our home. Right, Dean?” Cas looked over at his mate, who was busy sticking a pacifier in Alex’s mouth to quiet him before he woke Aidan and Evie.

“Yes, of course. And I’ll do what I can to help you and Jude get on your feet. I’m guessing that you didn’t get to further your career either, then?”

“Uh, no. I had to start working right away to take care of Jude. I’m not resentful or anything, because he’s worth it, but I work no less than sixty hours a week now, and it’s exhausting,” Alfie said. “This is my first vacation in four years. My second week that I’ll take off this year is when Dahlia is born.”

“What do you do?” Dean asked.

“I’m a manager at a factory. We make car parts.”

Dean looked over at his mate and saw the man arch one eyebrow. He knew the man was thinking the same thing he was. 

“Do you know how to work on cars too?” Dean asked as he turned his gaze back to Alfie. Cas was setting a sleepy Kate into the third swing, and he reached out to take Alex from Dean’s arms.

“I sure do. I work on cars when I need the extra money,” Alfie replied.

“What do you make an hour?” Dean knew he could pay the man better wages, and he could work fewer hours if he got him into one of his shops.

“Nine. Why are you asking this?” Alfie was suspicious of Dean’s line of questioning.

“And you’re supporting two people, soon to be three on that?” Cas knew how difficult it was surviving on his meager wages when he lived in The District, and he’d only needed to take care of himself on that. 

“We’re doing ok though. We’ll do better once Jude can get a job.”

“Alfie, buddy, how would you like to let your mate take a break until after your pup is here? I have a few openings at some of my shops, and I pay my staff well. You could support your family, Jude can have your pup and then go back to school, and I know a place he can work part time while he finishes up his nursing degree. You’ll both have jobs, your pup can go to daycare with our pups, and once Jude has his nursing degree he can get a job at one of the hospitals and you guys will be making a ton more than what you’re making now. And if you decided to get your engineering degree, or a mechanic’s license, I can consider you for a higher position, and of course you’ll make even more money.” Dean had a big heart, and he didn’t want to see his brother-in-law struggling, stressing himself out trying to figure out how to take care of his family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it sort of cut off abruptly but I forgot to send my Beta the rest that I had written. Whoops! So I'll write more, get it to her to edit, and hopefully we'll be ready for you by Wednesday. Still, I do hope you liked this chapter.


	54. The Pack Grows Larger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The continuation of Alfie's visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for not getting this chapter up Wednesday. I have been super busy, and I've been having some issues with my younger daughter She has severe insomnia to start with, it goes along with her ODD and other issues, so she takes Melatonin just to be able to fall asleep. She's a teenager, so trying to pry her iPod out of her hands is next to inpossible. I've tried, trust me. Starting last weekend she started having panic attacks when she would try to close her eyes to go to sleep, and that would snap her back into full wakefulness, and she'd be unable to fall asleep. This was ongoing all week long, and she was lucky if she was getting an hour or two of sleep at night. Last night I switched out the Melatonin for something different. I put her in a different bed in a quieter room, she fell asleep and slept ten straight hours. Her insomnia and literal hysteria was leaving me very little room to sleep since she would come into my room repeatedly all night long in tears just begging for sleep that wouldn't come. So I had to focus on her, and I had to do the grocery shopping, and take care of my mother's needs, and I have barely gotten five minutes to sit still in the last week. Most of my writing has been done on the go, on my phone on Google Docs, but I don't write this fic on there. I write this one in Word, but I gave up, and started writing it in Docs, it's the only way I was able to get anything written at all. So, apologies that it is late. Next chapter is actually in my wonderful beta's hands now, and will be ready for Sunday. I do hope you like this, and the rest of Alfie's visit.

“You…would give me a job?” Alfie seemed genuinely surprised by the offer, and it bled through in his scent.

“Of course. You’re family, and family is supposed to help and support one another, not shun one another or degrade them. Starting pay will be ten fifty, and if you get your mechanic’s license, it’ll go up to thirteen. If you make manager, it’ll be fifteen. And you’ll work a normal forty-hour work week,” Dean replied. Alfie pressed a hand to his mouth so his brother and brother in law wouldn’t see how badly his lower lip was quivering as he tried hard not to cry. The tears in his eyes betrayed him though. Cas sat forward and carefully wrapped an arm around his brother’s shoulder.

“Hey, it’s ok. You and Jude, you’ll be ok. Call him, tell him he can relax. That stress isn’t good for your pup.” 

Alfie nodded and pulled his phone out. He dialed his mate and explained the situation. He allowed himself his tears of joy since his mate was crying them too. When they hung up, he wiped away as much as he could.

“Thank you. We would like to invite you to dinner tomorrow night, if that’s alright. Jude insists.”

“We’re actually going out of town this weekend. We’re taking the pups back to the forest so the pack can meet our new pups and get to know the twins better. How about we have you both over next weekend though. I’ll grill, and we can enjoy an afternoon in the yard,” Dean offered.

“I’ll talk to Jude. That would give me a bit of time to help ease him into being on Alpha turf. It’s one thing to have one come into our home, but it’s another to step onto an unknown Alpha’s territory. Maybe we could meet in neutral territory during the week? Meet for lunch, maybe?” Alfie asked.

“Sure. Tuesday the pups have a doctor’s appointment, and we can meet at that time. At the Roadhouse, which is where Jude would be working through nursing school, if he wants the job.” Dean looked at Cas who quickly nodded.

“Ellen is normally here with me on Thursdays to help with the pups but Aidan needed a new inhaler, and I need some things for the house, so she ran to get them. She actually owns the Roadhouse and would be Jude’s boss. I’ll tell her that we’re bringing him by Tuesday, and he’ll get a feel for the place. I worked there briefly. It’s where I met Dean,” Cas explained.

“Is she an Alpha?” Alfie wasn’t sure Jude would be comfortable working for an Alpha.

“No, she’s a Beta, and so is her daughter, Jo. They’re good people. They kept me safe when I worked there. It was harder for me because I was an unmated Omega, but I don’t think he’d have problems because he is mated,” Cas replied.

They discussed the job Alfie would be doing, and Dean placed a call to Charlie to place Alfie at the shop nearest his apartment. Later they’d worry about other positions and where there were openings once the Beta had his license. Dean explained how he could get his license while still working and told his brother-in-law to come back Monday to the house to discuss the job further. He planned to take Alfie to the shop and have him fill out the paperwork and introduce him to everyone. Alfie was excited, and for the first time in ages he felt like the stress he’d felt for decades now was finally being lifted from his shoulders. It was an incredible feeling.

“Um, here, this is for the girls. I wasn’t sure when I’d be able to get over here to give these to you, so I bought them a little big on purpose. Hopefully they’re not too big for them.” Alfie handed the box to Dean, who opened it while Cas put Alex in his swing.

“Oh, Babe, look, these are beautiful.” Dean pulled out two little sundresses, one in yellow, one in mint green. He checked the size. Six months. Evie was already awake again in her swing so he picked her up and quickly stripped her down and slipped one of the dresses over her head. She was a skinny baby but it did fit, though it was a bit loose. 

“That’s precious. I bet with a tee shirt under it, it will fit better. They can wear them tomorrow.” Cas smiled at his pup, and she gurgled happily, kicking her little legs excitedly. Alfie reached into his bag and pulled out a second box. 

“This one is for Ellie and Molly, since I didn’t get to buy them anything when they were born. They should be interchangeable, and I got them bigger too, just in case. Jude says sometimes, just because something is marked twelve months, doesn’t mean it will fit a one-year-old, and I figured that the girls are probably closer to a year and a half now, so just to be safe, I went with 2T,” Alfie explained as Cas opened the box.

“Oh! Dean! These are the cutest things ever!” Cas gushed as he pulled out two fluffy tutus and two leotards. “I can’t wait for them to wear these!”

“I love those!” Dean exclaimed as he took the purple tutu from his mate. “As soon as they come home, I want them to try them on. I think I want do pictures in these.” 

“What do you think, pink for Molly and purple for Ellie?” Cas asked. Dean nodded.

“They’ll be so adorable. We’re late doing the three-month pics for the pups. And we want pics of them all together.” 

“Oh, that’s going to be an event.” Alfie chuckled.

“You have no idea. It took Dean, me, and Sam just to control the twins for their pics once they were able to crawl.” Cas pointed to a canvas portrait hanging over the sofa of Ellie and Molly when they were six months old. Since their wedding Dean and Cas had been trying to do family pictures regularly. Once the twins were born they had done pictures every three months like clockwork, and they were trying to do that with the new pups, but that wasn’t easy, not with Aidan having to stay so long in the hospital. They’d hired a photographer to come in to the hospital to do the first family portraits. Those ones then were sent to the media shortly after the press conference so people could see and understand why Dean wasn’t as available as they expected. They’d been much more patient and understanding since then. They wanted pictures of the six kids together, and soon.

“If you need help, Jude and I would gladly come and offer a hand to keep them all seated. Where do you go for pictures?” Alfie asked.

“We found that it’s easier if we just have the photographers come here. Home turf for the kids, and with Aidan’s health issues, it’s just safer. He hasn’t caught any viruses so far, but it’s only a matter of time, especially with Ellie and Molly in school, and the doctor says a respiratory infection would almost certainly put him back in the hospital. We’re still trying to boost his immune system. It’s a big reason why we’re going back to pack lands this weekend. We’re hoping the elders will have some advice on how to best help him. Traditional medicine is full of drugs, chemicals and preservatives. I want to see if there are some better, more natural alternatives,” Cas explained. 

“That makes sense. I hope they have some information for you. I can’t wait until Dahlia is here, but at the same time I’m scared of what she could get sick with. If you pick up any tips, please let me know.” Alfie worried a lot because it was a struggle already to cover insurance for him and for Jude, and now Dahlia would need to be covered too. And the deductibles were ridiculous. To cover Jude’s delivery alone was going to cost him a small fortune.

“What are you thinking about there? You look like something is bothering you.” Dean had noticed the troubled look on his brother-in-law’s face.

“Oh, I was just worrying again about Dahlia, and she’s not even here yet. I was thinking if she contracts anything, the deductible is ridiculous, and that got me thinking about Jude’s delivery. Out of pocket I have to come up with a little more than three thousand, and that’s counting on there not being any complications. It’d be closer to ten if he needs a C-section.”

Dean had been wealthy for so long now that sometimes he forgot that sometimes people really did struggle. For a person making nine an hour and struggling to support a growing family, he understood why Alfie was worried.

“I provide better insurance. It is less out of cost to you for your mate to get prenatal care and to cover his delivery. We’ll get all of that sorted out Monday though, and get you and Jude both onto a better path, so you can enjoy your new pup and give her the kind of life you really want.” He patted his brother-in-law’s shoulder to reassure him that he meant what he said. Their lives would be much easier.

“I will be here Monday, there’s no question of that. What time should I be here?” Alfie asked.

“Well, we’re up by six and dealing with the pups til around eight, so…let’s aim for ten. That’ll give me time to deal with my morning emails and take a shower. Then we’ll drive over to the shop by your apartment, and I’ll introduce you to the current manager. And so you know, I encourage employees to strive for the best. You could move up to district manager and then regional. I pay handsomely at those levels. You could afford several pups on that kind of salary,” Dean told him. Alfie’s smile was somewhat sad.

“It took us this long to conceive Dahlia. She’s our little miracle. We started trying about ten years ago, but a Beta/Omega pairing is hard enough as it is, but when the Omega is male, it drops the rate of conception drastically. We lost a pup six years ago, a boy. It devastated Jude. He wasn’t out of the first trimester yet at that time, but it crushed him. We waited with Dahlia until he was into his second trimester. The doctor’s don’t foresee any complications this time. His blood pressure is normal, all the bloodwork came back fine, ultrasounds show she’s a strong pup with a solid heartbeat. I think part of the reason we miscarried last time was how much stress Jude was under. He contracted a virus two months in that took another three months to shake, and he was under stress at work; we were up to our ears in bills, and it was just too much to handle. This time around he’s been healthy the entire time, bills are paid up, and the only stress he’s had is losing his job, which would be leading us into debt again if we weren’t getting help from you both.” Alfie pulled one last box out of the bag. “This is for Aidan and Alex. Looking at Aidan, though, I think he’ll have a long time before he’ll fit into one of them.” He handed the box to Cas who had gone and put Alex and Evie, once she’d been changed back into her sleeper, back in their swings. They now had four sleeping pups again.

Cas opened the box, smiling as he saw the outfits. “Dean! Look at these!”

“Those are adorable!” Dean took the box so he could get a better look. Two white tee shirts with little flannel shirts to go over them, and jeans were inside. One green flannel, one blue. He was in love. “We need to do pics in these, too. Thank you, Alfie, we love all of these. The kids will definitely be wearing them, and soon.”

“You’re quite welcome. Like I said, Jude picked them out. He has really good taste. He’s picked up some really cute things already for Dahlia. We still have to pick out her crib and dresser, but we’ll do that soon.” Alfie was just glad his brother and brother in law liked what they’d bought for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked the chapter. I just had to do the little, baby, flannel shirts for Alex and Aidan. Can you just imagine? They'd be so cute!!!!


	55. Bathtime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean can feel his mate's exhaustion, so he sends him off to have some time to himself and just relax. That means a nice, hot bubble bath. That's where Dean finds his mate later, sound asleep in the cooling water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a bit of love that Dean and Cas find in one of their moments alone. Anyone with babies knows how much you treasure those moments! Enjoy!

Alfie stayed another hour, playing with the pups and talking with his brother and brother-in-law. After washing his hands thoroughly, he was even able to hold Aidan. The pups adored their uncle, and he loved having the opportunity to bond with them. 

Ellen came home finally, with the car loaded down with groceries, and was surprised to see Dean home and see they had company. Dean had security unload the car and then went through everything and put it all away. Once Alfie had left, Cas brought the pups back to the kitchen, and Dean helped him feed them some peas and sweet potatoes. Sam arrived just as Dean was finishing making dinner with Henry and the twins, and then came the task of feeding them, too. Sam and Henry stayed for dinner, and by the time they left, Cas was wiped. Dean could feel his mate’s exhaustion and sent him off to relax. 

“But-” Cas was cut off with a kiss before he could protest further. 

“Go take a bubble bath, Sweetheart, you deserve it. I'll get the kids to bed. Donna will help with Aidan.” The Alpha looked at the nurse who was checking the pup's oxygen levels. She quickly nodded. Though they hadn't wanted a nanny, she had fallen in love with the pups and sort of fell into the role, and Cas appreciated the extra help and that she had medical knowledge. Her own pups were grown and moved away, so getting to work with the Winchester children was a blessing as far as she was concerned. 

Cas was reluctant to leave Dean to handle all the pups, but Ellen and Donna were there to help and Jo would be coming to relieve Ellen by nine, and the twins adored her. He went up to the bedroom and took his time stripping down. There was milk from when he'd leaked through a nursing pad on the front of his shirt and specks of sweet potatoes and peas. At the hem he rubbed at a red stain. Tomato sauce? Ketchup? He didn't even know anymore. With a sigh he chucked his shirt and sweatpants in the laundry basket and padded into the bathroom to fill the tub. Dean had bought him dozens of different kinds of bath salts and bubbles back when they'd first begun courting, and he'd moved it all into this bathroom after they’d mated. He sorted through everything, finding his inflatable bath pillow along the way. Eventually he settled on mint and rosemary bubbles. He poured a couple of capfuls into the water, smiling as the wonderful scent began to fill the room. After stripping off his underwear and setting a thick towel within easy reach, he slipped into the water. 

He hadn't realized he'd dozed off until he felt fingers carding through his hair some time later. The water had grown cold, and he shivered. Looking up he saw Dean kneeling next to the tub. 

“Did I scare you?” the Alpha asked. 

“No, but the water is freezing.” Cas sat up and pulled the plug to drain the tub. As the water emptied he looked up at his mate again.

“Pups are all in bed?”

Dean nodded. “Yep. Jo came and helped us get them all into bed. She read to Ellie and Molly and they passed out almost immediately. Kate and Evie fell asleep pretty quickly too. Alex wanted to play. I do have bad news though, Aidan started coughing and his O2 levels dropped, so Donna had to give him some oxygen.”

Cas frowned. “My poor little boy. Is he asleep now?”

“He is. Donna put the monitor on him, and she'll check him every two hours.” Dean stood up and started stripping. The sight of his mate’s naked body aroused him and the Alpha’s nostrils flared as he caught his Omega’s scent. The tub had finished draining so he reached past Cas to stick the plug in and fill it back up. 

“Can I join you?” he asked. Cas scooted forward, and Dean slid in behind him. As soon as he was settled, Cas leaned back against him. 

Most of the time Dean spent alone with his mate was after the kids were asleep for the night. This was the time he was able to shower his mate with attention, and Cas loved every moment. Now, as he slid the tips of his fingers up Cas’ arms he wondered if his mate was leaking slick. The water mixed with the scent of mint and rosemary so completely that it masked any slick that might be there. He traced the mating bite, applying a bit of pressure with his thumb. Cas gasped and reached back to grab his hand. 

“What are you doing?” Cas craned his head around to look back at him.

“Touching you. Do you want me to stop?” Dean asked. Cas tried not to smile and failed miserably.

“Depends. What are your intentions?”

Dean’s grin was wolfish, and it had Cas laughing.

“Uh huh, that’s what I thought.” Cas leaned back again, pressing back more firmly. Dean was already getting hard. If his Alpha could smell the slick he was leaking, he’d be rock hard in less than a minute. Thank goodness the water was masking that!

Dean’s hands wandered over his mate’s shoulders but hesitated before sliding them down over his Omega’s chest. “Can I?”

“Yes.” 

Cas tilted his head as Dean kissed his neck and moaned when his mate’s hands left his shoulders and slid down to cup his breasts. They were full again, and before he went to bed for the night he would need to pump. Dean had bought him two kinds of pumps, a manual one and an electric one, as well as a mini fridge. That way he could pump without having to go downstairs to store it. Cas was very appreciative of all of the things Dean did to make his life easier. The tub was full so Dean reached past him to turn the faucet off. The water was hot and felt wonderful, even if Cas’ toes were wrinkled. It felt amazing to have his mate’s hands on him. Dean’s teeth grazed the mating mark, and Cas had to fight the urge to present right then and there. He grabbed one of Dean’s hands and shoved it down, under the water where he pressed it against his cock.

“Mmm, I want to get you out of this tub, but I just got in,” Dean chuckled. His voice low in Cas’ ear.

“Grab the shampoo,” Cas demanded. The laughter that rumbled up from his Alpha’s chest was rich and deep, and it was making Cas even harder. Dean’s hand pulled away from Cas’ cock, making the Omega whimper.

“Shh, I’ll take care of you, Baby.” Dean nipped at his ear and Cas’ hips jerked forward instinctively. All he could do was sit back and wait for Dean to do what he wanted, which was to take his sweet time washing his Omega, and himself.

Dean lovingly washed his mate’s hair and body, his hands lingering over the man’s breasts, his thighs, his still hard cock. He avoided moving lower, not wanting to make his Omega come before he was ready. He knew it was starting to aggravate the man, so he made quick work of washing his own hair and body. Ten minutes later Cas was draining the tub and climbing out. He dried off and marched out of the bathroom without a word. Dean scrambled to grab the towel Cas had dropped and used it to dry himself off.

“Cas?” He barely got two steps out of the bathroom before the heavy scent of slick hit him. His eyes locked on his mate, who was lying in the bed working himself open.

“You just going to stand there and stare?” the Omega growled. That spurred Dean into motion, and he dropped the towel as he crossed the room. He climbed onto the bed and pulled his mate’s dripping hand away.

“What do you think you’re doing?” 

Cas shivered at the sound of his mate’s voice. Dean was still holding his wrist, eyes shimmering red around the edges. He brought Cas’ hand to his mouth and slowly sucked the slick that dripped off his fingertips. The Omega whimpered, letting his legs fall open as he reached for his mate with his free hand.

“Dean, please…” he begged. His Alpha growled as he dropped Cas’ hand and gripped his thighs. 

“So good, so wet for me,” he purred. The very sound of his voice caused more slick to pour out. Neither man could find it within them to care that the sheets would need to be changed before they could go to sleep. All Dean cared about was tasting everything his mate had to offer. It was messy and wet, but he didn't care as he buried his face between Cas’ legs. Cas reached for his mate, scratching and pulling at him as Dean's tongue buried itself inside him. With his cock not even being touched, he came so hard he was seeing stars. Dean's mouth was still licking and sucking at his hole, as though desperate to drink every ounce of slick Cas could produce. As Cas went limp, he slowed his movements until he had pulled his tongue out completely. He knew his mate could and would come again if he let him. Cas was almost never done after coming just once.

“You ok, Sweetheart?” Dean asked as he pressed tender kisses to his mate's thighs. He felt the muscles twitch under his touch and slick began to trickle out again. 

“Mmm, yes. But I need more, Dean. I need your knot.” Cas sighed as Dean climbed up him and kissed him. 

“Let me grab a condom.” 

The Alpha reached into the nightstand and pulled one out. Cas watched as he tore the package open and rolled the condom on. He patted Cas’ thigh and his mate immediately rolled over. Once he was on all fours, Dean checked to make sure there was enough slick so he wouldn't hurt his mate. Inserting two fingers and rubbing against Cas’ prostate had the man crying out as slick began to gush out. Belatedly he thought the bath should have taken place after sex, but as he sank into his mate, his husband, the man he lived for, he could only concentrate on how amazing it felt to be connected like this, and how perfectly Cas seemed to be fitted to him. As he began to thrust, his hand found Cas’ neglected cock and began to stroke it until it was hard and leaking once more. 

Despite the heat between them when they'd first come back into the bedroom and Dean's need to get his mouth on his mate, the actual sex was without urgency. He kissed every inch of skin he could reach and when his knot finally began to swell and lock them together, they came in tandem, Cas spilling for the second time over Dean's hand just as the Alpha reached his own climax. Carefully he lifted his mate and settled them both on their side. 

“Dean, my breasts are painfully full,” Cas whined. He was actually starting to leak and Dean swiped a finger through it, bringing it to his lips to taste. 

“Our pups are lucky. It's like ambrosia. Why don't you grab your pump and relieve the pressure? I'm sure some little ones will be appreciative come morning,” Dean said. It was a stretch, but Cas was able to reach his pump and one of the sterilized bottles they kept on hand for nights like this. 

Dean loved watching his mate feed their pups. There was something so beautiful about it and he felt pride in those moments knowing that was _his_ mate and those were _his_ pups. Cas was perfect. Their pups were perfect. Even now as Cas hummed softly to himself as he filled bottle after bottle, Dean felt content and happy, and he felt proud.

When they were finally able to separate, Dean sent Cas to take a quick shower and wash himself off while he stripped the bed and put new sheets on. By the time Cas came back in the room he was sleepy and filled with contentment. Dean kissed his forehead and tucked him into bed before leaving to take a quick shower of his own. Cas was still awake, waiting for him, when he came back. He crawled into the bed, and his Omega moved closer until Dean had him wrapped in his arms. That was how they fell asleep, safe, sated and content.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. Next, they're off to the forest to be with the pack. :)


	56. Pack Lands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean takes his family back to the pack lands as planned, but once they get there, there's a minor complication with Aidan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for being late again. I've had a lot going on. I got some bad news about my older daughter Monday. I got my tax money back, and with what little I had left over after bills, rent, and food, I took my older daughter to the eye doctor. Her glasses were so broken that they desperately needed to be replaced, but it had been over a year, probably closer to two since she had been in to get her vision tested, so I got her the exam, and as I was looking at new frames for her, the doctor came out to talk to me personally. See, my daughter is old enough to get her exam alone now (she's 17), so for the doctor to come out to talk to me? I knew something was wrong. It turns out that my daughter has a cataract. It's the fast growing kind and has to be monitored. I swear my heart leapt into my throat. I thought after the fact to ask if it was hereditary, and if my younger daughter could also develop cataracts. I found out today that yes, it is, and she can. My older daughter can't be treated until it gets worse, and at that point they're talking surgery. It has been a head spinning week for me, and I've dealt with that, plus my younger daughter's battles against insomnia all of last week and part of this week, and on top of all of that, I'm tearing ANOTHER ligament. This one in my hip. It's just been a rough last few weeks. So, I apologize for being late, and I am going ahead and putting this chapter up un-beta'd, but I have sent it to my beta. She'll edit it and later I'll put up the edited copy. But for now, I wanted to make sure you all got to read this one. So forgive any errors!

The following morning was chaotic at best trying to get six babies into the new extended cab van that Dean had invested in. Jo had offered to come with to help and seeing as how Cas was close to losing his mind, he jumped at the offer. While Dean worked with Alan and two others on their security staff to get the car seats into the van and secured, Cas and Jo worked together to make sure they had everything the pups would need for the weekend.

“Donna already packed another inhaler and two bottles of oxygen for Aidan, so you don’t have to worry about that, but maybe we should make sure we have the natural wipes for the pups? In case they get dirty. Oh who are we kidding. Ellie and Molly will get filthy. Wipes are a necessity.” Jo laughed as she packed more diapers and receiving blankets. Those things doubled as so many other things, and they came in very handy.

“I have a box of wipes as well as an entire bag of wash clothes ready. I anticipate the girls getting filthy. The cabin has electric and hot water, so if they need a bath, trust me, they’ll get one.” Cas said. He grabbed Molly’s Binky Bear. There was no way he wanted to spend three days listening to her wail because she didn’t have it. 

“Bring your slings. Easier to transport pups in them. Then we can all carry one pup.” She pointed to the closet where the slings were currently stored. He went and grabbed them, stuffing them in another bag.

“I packed their clothes, and extra shoes for the girls, and sunblock, and…” He was rattling off things and Jo listened. She understood his stress. This was their first time away from home since Aidan had been cleared to come home from the hospital. They just didn’t travel far with six little pups.

“Cas, it’s ok. You’ll be ok, the pups will be ok. We’re here to help.” She walked over and pulled him into a hug. He sighed as he melted into it, needing the reassurance more than he had realized.

“Hey, van’s ready.” Dean announced as he stepped into the room. “You ok, Babe?” He had been feeling low level stress coming from his mate all morning, but in the last hour it had been inching steadily higher. Cas pulled back from Jo and nodded.

“Just a little stressed. It’s our first time away from home with the kids and I’m trying to cover all of our bases.” He said.

“It’s fine. Look, we have full security detail coming with us, we have everything we need and if we should forget something, I can send someone to buy it for us. So relax. Think of this as more of a family vacation.” Dean ran his fingers through his mate’s hair and smiled at him. “We’ll be ok.”

Cas smiled and nodded. “Alright. You put the pack and plays in the van already?”

“I did. Four of them. I figure two of the little pups to one, and the girls each get their own. You have Binky?” Dean asked. Cas held up the stuffed bear. “Well alright then, let’s hit to road!”

There were plenty of adults around to help get the pups all secured in their seats. Jo sat in the far back between Ellie and Molly while Donna sat between Aidan and Kate. Evie and Alex were sitting in the very middle seats and could be reached by either Jo or Donna. Cas climbed into the passenger seat while Dean got behind the wheel. They had a security vehicle in front of them and another one behind them, so they were ready to go. It was just after seven and most of the pups were still sleeping. Cas was grateful for the quiet.

“So when we get there, are you and Cas meeting the big guy on your own first?” Jo asked.

“Yes. Then we’ll bring the pups to be introduced. From what I hear, Reeva and the other Omegas are dying to see them. Dean replied.

“So Donna and I will stay up at the cabin with the pups until you come back.” 

“Exactly.” He confirmed.

Cas pulled out a book he’d brought along for the ride and read quietly as Dean drove. The Alpha was content to listen to the music and was busy paying attention to their security detail so he didn’t mind the silence. The view once they left the city, as the open fields full of corn and soy began to fall away and the forests came into view were stunning, and his mind wandered to what it would be like to run free, the wind running through his fur as he chased after his mate and his pups. To take wolf form was something he had always wanted, had dreamed of all through his youth. It saddened him that so many had left the forests in favor of the cities, and then never returned. Had he been around back when the first of his ancestors were leaving, he would have insisted they stay. The cities were not good for wolves.

The drive was pleasant all around and when they pulled onto pack lands, Dean spotted the wolves right away. They were dashing around, playing along the tree line, and they stopped when the cars pulled up to watch. Dean had packed the strollers too, and between him, Cas, Jo, and Donna, they got all of the pups into the strollers and from there, into the cabin. Being moved and with all new smells and a new location, the pups were all waking up, and the little ones were fussy. Aidan began coughing and Cas went into panic mode. He administered the pup’s inhaler and his breathing began to even out. Donna checked his vitals and his oxygen levels, surprised that his oxygen levels were normal.

“He’s ok, he doesn’t need it.” She said. Cas held his pup close, sniffling and blinking away the tears that threatened to spill. It scared him half to death every single time his pup struggled like this. Every time he couldn’t get enough oxygen into his lungs, every time he needed help with his breathing, it tore at the Omega’s very soul. 

Dean, sensing his mate’s distress, dropped everything he was unloading from the van and raced back inside. 

“Cas? Cas!” 

“In here! We’re in here!” Cas and Donna had managed to get the younger pups up to one of the bedrooms while Jo had the twins under control downstairs. Dean flew up the stairs two at a time and followed his mate’s smell to the first bedroom on the left. Cas was sitting on the bed with three of the pups spread out on the bed next to him and Aidan cradled in his arms. Dean dropped to his knees in front of his mate, placing one hand on Cas’ thigh and the other on his son’s head.

“Where’s his oxygen? Is he having trouble breathing again?” He looked to Donna who held up a hand placatingly.

“His inhaler worked. His oxygen levels are good, he doesn’t need the cannula.” 

Dean brought his hand up to his mate’s cheek as he tried to soothe him.

“Honey, shhh.” 

Cas sniffled and leaned into his mate’s touch for a moment before turning back to their pup. Aidan was looking up at Cas with huge blue eyes. He could smell his father’s distress, and it had the pup conflicted. Cas forced himself to calm down and he smiled down at his son.

“Who’s Papa’s beautiful little boy?” He cooed. Aidan’s look of concern turned to a joyful smile. He babbled and reached for the finger Cas dangled over his face. Dean kissed his son before leaning up to kiss Cas too.

“He’s ok, Sweetheart. We’ll go and talk to the elders, see what they can tell us. I’m sure pups have come early for them before. Any advice we can get, it will help us, so Aidan can grow up strong and healthy. Let’s go and see them, ok? Donna has bottles.” Dean glanced at the nurse who quickly nodded. “And we’ll take Aidan with us. Once they meet him, we’ll come back for the rest of the pups.”

Cas nodded and once Dean had stood up, he allowed his mate to help him to his feet too. He waited for his Alpha to get one of the slings and helped him into it. Dean knew full well that when his son was like this, Cas wouldn’t let anyone else, save for possibly Donna hold him. His mate was fiercely protective of their pups, but with Aidan’s fragile health, he was even more protective.

“Do you need me to accompany you?” Donna asked. Dean was torn. He was worried for what could happen to their son if his nurse was not kept close. 

“Yes, we need you. I’ll have Alan and Rick stay with Jo to help with the pups.” He decided. Sure, they were security, but Alan was his friend, and he understood.

Once they were downstairs, Dean paused to talk to Alan and once he had security pitching in to help with the other five pups, they stepped out on the porch. At the far end of the open field stood four wolves. Between them stood the familiar forms of both Mordecai and Reeva. As they crossed the field, the elders greeted them with pleased smiles and a handshake.

“Greetings, Dean.” Mordecai said. “And welcome home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, and I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. :)


	57. The Pups Meet the Pack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Cas meet with Mordecai and Reeva, and make plans to join the pack for lunch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a very busy weekend, so I got a really late start writing this chapter, so I apologize for that. I hope you enjoy it.

“Your travels were well?” Mordecai asked.

“Yes, they were. The weather is good for traveling.” Dean replied. He looked over to see Reeva bent over the sling Cas was wearing, smiling down at Aidan. 

“This pup, he is not well?” She asked as Aidan grasped the finger she held out to him. 

“His lungs were not fully developed when he was born. He has breathing problems still.” Cas explained. She nodded as she straightened up and looked at him. 

“May I hold him?”

Cas was particular about the people that got to hold his pup, especially after Aidan had been having an episode. Dean and Donna were about it. Sometimes Ellen, Sam or Gabe, but that was rare. Now, with Reeva looking at him, he gently lifted his pup out of the sling and offered him to her. She cradled him close and he cooed gently as he smiled up at her.

“You have how many pups now? There were two the last you were here, two little girls, correct? Is this the only new pup?” Mordecai asked.

“No, we actually have six now.” Dean replied with a chuckle as the elder’s eyes widened.

“You have six pups? Where are the rest?” 

Dean pointed a thumb back towards the cabin. “Up there, with my cousin and our security staff.”

Mordecai cocked his head in confusion. “You have security? For what reason? Is this because of the Alpha, Nick?”

“I am in politics now. I run the city. Do you remember me telling you last time that we had a problem with an Alpha that was harassing my mate?” Dean asked. Mordecai nodded.

“You said that was not an issue any longer. The Alpha that threatened you was killed, and by your mate, if I remember correctly. If that Alpha is no longer a threat, why would you continue to need security?” 

City life was so different than life in the forest. Here, there were no threats, except perhaps idiots from the city with guns, but even those people didn’t stand a chance against a pack this connected, this strong. Dean wasn’t sure he could explain the need to protect his mate and pups. He wasn’t sure he needed to. Mordecai had a mate of his own, had raised his own pups right here in these forests. Mordecai would kill to protect his mate, but he would do so to protect the rest of his pack too. Dean felt the same way about his pack, but he knew his mate felt it too. Cas had already proven that nearly two years prior. But leaving behind the old world and the old rules meant that most people no longer remembered what the true meaning of “pack” meant, or what loyalty and respect meant. Dean was a big name, not just in the city, but across the entire United States. He was one of the richest men in the world. That came with a certain amount of risk, both for him and for his pack. 

“I have made a name for myself outside, in the cities all across America. Winchester is a name well known. The old rules, whilst me and my pack follow them still, most people do not. I will do what I need to do in order to protect my family.” Dean replied. Mordecai looked at him for a moment, eyes dark and unreadable. Finally he nodded.

“Collect your pups and bring them. You will need no security beyond this clearing. You are part of our pack.” He looked at Cas, nodding at the Omega. “As is your mate. Come, we will eat together as a family.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean called up to cabin, thankful he still had some kind of signal. A few more feet into the treeline and there would be no signal at all. Jo and Alan came down with the rest of the pups but it took them a little while since they had to load all of the pups up in the strollers, and make sure they had the diaper bags. Molly and Ellie were excited to see their fathers and smiled happily once they spotted them.

“Dada!” Molly reached for Dean, straining against the strap that held her in her seat, and he reached down to take her out.

“Such a strong, healthy pup, aren’t you?” For the first time since he was a boy, Dean saw a genuinely warm smile cross Mordecai’s face as he looked at Molly. She looked shyly up at the man before looking at Dean to see if the Alpha was safe. Dean smiled encouragingly.

“Say hi. It’s ok.” He bounced his pup lightly and watched as she turned again to look at Mordecai.

“Hi.” It was soft but the Elder heard her and smiled wider. 

“Hello to you, Little One. And what is your name?”

“This is Molly. Gabrielle is her twin, but we call her Ellie.” Dean replied. Cas walked over with Ellie in his arms. The pup smiled brightly and waved at Mordecai.

“Hi!” She gave him a toothy grin. Mordecai chuckled and waved back.

“Hello, Ellie.”

Reeva motioned towards the treeline and three people appeared, walking in their direction.

“We will take this back to the village. The rest of the pack is eager to meet your pups and get to know your mate better. There are many pups for your little ones to play with.” She said.

Dean nodded and smiled at his mate. He could feel Cas’ contentment and that made him happy. Cas trusted his pack explicitly because he trusted them. 

“Your security does not need to follow.” Mordecai eyed Donna, as though trying to figure out her role in the pack. Dean noticed.

“She’s Aidan’s nurse. He regularly has problems breathing and she helps him.”

“Her presence will not be needed.” Reeva was already starting for the treeline and Cas, unwilling to leave his pup, followed. Dean felt only the mildest of alarm in his mate. Clearly Cas trusted that Reeva and the other Omegas would be able to help their pup. Dean turned to Donna.

“I know the basics. I’m a little nervous, but I trust my pack. Give me his bag, just in case.” He told her. She handed the bag over and proceeded to sit down right where she was.

“In case you need me, I don’t want to run from the cabin. It’s too far.”

Dean smiled and nodded. “Thank you.” Her loyalty to his pack was admirable. He made a mental note to give the woman a generous bonus at Christmas for all of her hard work.

Hefting Molly a little higher on his hip, he followed Mordecai and the others who were carrying his other pups into the woods. It was time to really introduce his family to the extended pack.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It has been many years since you have been to this part of the village. I don’t know how much you remember, but this is my den. My mate Giselle is inside tending to the stew she has prepared for lunch.” Mordecai stopped in front of one of what was roughly a hundred different dwellings. There were no caves in these parts, so the wolves had created their own, hand built homes. Mordecai’s was no bigger than any of the others, and this didn’t surprise Dean at all. Equality here meant everything.

“Castiel, if you would not mind, come with me. I would like to introduce you to the Omegas of our pack. Some of which I think can help shed some light on how to bring relief to young Aidan and his breathing. Do any of your other pups have issues?”

Reeva and Cas were already walking away. Two young pups, roughly around ten or eleven years old came bounding up to Dean.

“We can take her. She will be safe.” The girl said. Dean looked at Mordecai who nodded.

“These are my grandchildren. This is Danae and Sonad. Molly will join her siblings and the Omegas who are gathered in expectation of meeting your mate and the rest of your pups.” Mordecai said. 

“You’re going to go play, ok, Mama? Daddy loves you. Be a good girl.” Dean kissed his pup’s forehead before handing her over. The girls ran off in the direction Reeva and Cas had gone.

“Come. We will eat and discuss your reasons for visiting. I sense that there is much on your mind.” Mordecai motioned for him to follow, so Dean did. They stepped into a small but clean dwelling. It was round with an open floor plan. A fireplace in the back corner was lit, and a large pot hung over it. Dean had vague memories of eating here as a young boy. Looking up he spotted the loft. He remembered playing with Sorla, Ember, and Varion, Mordecai and Giselle’s pups. The ones that were around his and Sam’s ages, at least. There had been other pups, some older, some younger, but he hadn’t interacted with them too much. Memories were slowly beginning to rise to the surface as he looked around the room. This had felt more like home to him than the city had. He recalled his mother sitting by the window with Giselle, drinking pine needle tea and eating homemade bread while Dean and his brother ran around with the other pups. He-

“Did I ever shift?” He asked suddenly. The sly smile that crossed Mordecai’s face told Dean the answer.

“Your father told me you shifted only as a small pup, and only when you were here, on pack lands. It had surprised your parents the first time you did it. The other pups had shifted to go run and play, and suddenly you were on all fours, chasing after the other pups, and you had shifted. Your mother was overjoyed. Your father, I believe he was in shock. See, your father? His great, great grandfather was my great, great, great grandfather’s brother. Dorlin and Nahim. Nahim grew curious about the outside world and felt that he would be happier out there than here. He took his mate Belinda and they left. Their pups were born away from here. They never returned, though they did occasionally visit. Nahim begot Nathaniel who begot Efraim, who begot John, who begot you and Samuel. Nathaniel brought his mate and pups back to visit regularly, and therefore Efraim returned as well. John returned at his mate’s insistence, and so he brought you and your brother. Now that you are an adult, you are returning with your own mate and pups. And so the tradition continues, however I have some news that may surprise you. I will allow you to properly greet my mate, and then we will sit down and talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're leading up to some interesting revelations about Dean's origins as well as Cas'. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and that those of you who are mothers had a wonderful Mother's Day. I made my kids plant flowers, lol. Verbena, Lobelia, Pansies, and two rescued, nearly dead Bleeding Hearts. My older daughter didn't mind, but the younger one hates planting, so she grumbled and whined, lol. I made her do it anyway. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this, and have a great week!


	58. Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean learns a lot about both his pack and Cas'. It's eye opening for everyone. Giselle, Mordecai's mate has advice for Dean and Cas regarding Aidan's breathing issues and how to heal the pup's lungs naturally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been so busy, so this chapter went up late. It's been a hectic last few weeks for me. I feel like I'm barely sitting still for more than five minutes for the last month. And at the same time I feel like I've gotten absolutely nothing done. I hate that feeling! But I did get this chapter written, and I hope you all like it. It's...enlightening for both Dean and Cas.

Mordecai gestured towards Giselle who was setting bowls out on the table. She smiled and Dean approached her, waiting for her to turn and fully face him. He bowed his head in submission and when she offered a hand, he kissed it gently.

“It has been many, many years since I saw you last, pup. You have grown into a fine, strong Alpha. Mordecai says you are now mated and with pups of your own. I look forward to meeting them this afternoon.” She said.

“My mate’s name is Castiel. He is my true mate. We have six pups now.” Dean told her. She gave a small gasp and when he looked up at her, he could see the surprise on her face.

“Were you not here just a few seasons ago with just two pups?”

Dean grinned and nodded. “Those are our twins, Molly and Ellie. Earlier this year we had quadruplets. Alex, Kate, Aidan, and Evie.”

“Their pup Aidan is not well. The pups were born too early and he has trouble breathing.” Mordecai added. Giselle’s expression morphed into one of concern. 

“Mordecai, call our kin for lunch. I wish to meet our newest pack members.” She said. He nodded and left the house. A moment later they heard a wolf howling. Giselle turned to Dean. “Are you thirsty? Mordecai fetched water from the well in anticipation of your arrival, but I made some strawberry wine last week and there are several bottles.”

“Strawberry wine sounds wonderful, but Cas will need water as he is nursing our pups.” Dean replied.

“Oh, no, I am making him a tea. It will help to heal your pup as it will be in your mate’s milk. Then all of your pups will benefit from it.” She was already gathering herbs together and mixing them.

“May I ask what herbs you are using? Do I need to continue to give him the tea once we go home?” Dean thought he recognized a few things she was mixing together.

“Of course.” She pointed out each herb to him and he pulled his phone out to write the names down for future reference. When the door opened a few minutes later Mordecai was holding Ellie while Cas was ushering Molly inside. The pup looked happy as she ran over to a chair on the far wall and climbed up into it. Aidan was back in the sling on his chest. Reeva came in with Kate cradled to her chest. Two young girls were holding Evie and Alex. 

“Cas, this is Giselle, Mordecai’s mate.” Dean introduced. Cas smiled and lowered his head in submission as he kissed her hand. Dean had taught him proper etiquette in preparation for this weekend. Though Cas was an Omega like Giselle, he was not an elder. Greeting an elder meant submission and respect. She smiled warmly and ran her fingers through Cas’ hair.

“It is nice to finally meet Dean’s mate. I am glad he found his true mate.” She pulled back a corner of the sling and looked down at the sleeping pup. “He is a beautiful pup. This is Aidan?” She looked up at Cas who nodded.

“Dean has told you about his issues?” 

“He told me your pups were born early and that Aidan has breathing problems. I have seen this before, and even had a few issues with one of my own pups. My son Namiel was born struggling to breathe. An elder had been teaching me the different kinds of teas that help with various ailments, and one in particular helped my son’s lungs to heal and grow stronger. I have made some now. It will help him. In a few weeks time he should be much better.” She went to the counter and poured hot water over the herbs she had dropped into the bottom of a cup.

“He’s too young for tea though, isn’t he?” Cas asked.

“It is not for your pup to drink, it is for you to drink. I have added mint and some dried strawberries to help sweeten it, but it is not bad on its own.” She brought the cup to him and he accepted it graciously. Dean had scooped Molly up before she could tear around the room and get into things and was now standing next to his mate. He could smell the tea. It was fragrant and Cas made a pleased sound at the back of his throat as he sipped at it.

“It’s good.”

“Drink all of it and I will give you more. I gave Dean the list of herbs I used and before you leave I will make sure you have enough to last you until your pup is healed.” Giselle said. 

Cas finished the cup and Mordecai directed everyone into the main part of the room where they sat down on the few remaining pieces of furniture. Cas was directed to one of the chairs and was amused when Dean sat at his feet with Molly in his lap. A second chair was left empty for Giselle and Reeva sat on a third one. The two girls, new mates for two of Mordecai’s Alpha grandsons, helped Giselle with serving the food. Giselle took the last chair, and her mate sat down at her feet.

Life here was so different than it was once you left and went into the cities. Here, Omegas were respected and revered. They were treasured by their mates and seen as valuable members of the pack. In the cities, they were treated like garbage, seen as useless for anything other than breeding. Cas realized that Dean lived by the old ways, which was why his Alpha was so kind and gentle with him, and why he never once treated Cas like he was less than his equal. Dean was a rare Alpha out in the new world. He now understood why his mate wanted to come back here as often as he could. This place was infinitely more comfortable to his Alpha than the negativity and sexism that ran rampant within the cities.

“So guess what, babe.” Dean turned a bit, resting one arm across Cas’ knees as he looked up at him.

“What?” Cas asked.

“It turns out that when I was a pup, and not much older than Ellie and Molly, I shifted.”

Cas nearly dropped his bowl of stew. His jaw dropped and his eyes bulged in shock.

“You _shifted_? You’re certain of this?”

Dean looked over at Mordecai who nodded in agreement.

“It is true. He shifted and ran to play with my pups and the other pups in the village. I have news about Dean’s mother, Mary Campbell Winchester.” 

Dean sat up straighter. “News about my mom?”

“Your mother’s pack was a small one from out east. They are actually a nomadic pack with no real land to call their own, not in over a hundred years. Your grandfather Samuel was the first Campbell pup born in one of the cities. I understand that you do not have a good relationship with him because he did not approve of your father as a potential mate. But he was torn, because the traditions here dictate that an Omega chooses their mate, should they choose to take one that is not their true mate, but in the cities Alphas will sell their Omega children. Samuel did not feel it was right to sell his only daughter, so he allowed her to choose. She chose John. He understood and respected pack laws and traditions, and she felt he would be a good mate and a good father to their pups. Mary was a good Omega and a good mate to John. It was a sad day when we learned of her death. You see, your father did not have the ability to shift, but your mother did. And in coming here, she made sure you and your brother would have that knowledge. It is our belief that she knew she was sick and dying, and that her mate would be unable to care for their pups by himself. She wanted John to reach out to us here, so that we could help him care for you and your brother, but instead John pulled away. Long periods of time passed where we did not see you or Samuel, and by the time you were presenting, you no longer remembered being able to shift at all.” Mordecai explained. Dean’s head was spinning from this new information. 

“My mom could have raised us here? She could have returned and raised us _here_?” 

“That was not an option. John could not shift and he could not be separated from his mate, therefore Mary could not have stayed. She wanted to though, she did not like living in the city.” Reeva said.

“So...wolves may return, _if_ they can shift?” Cas was trying to understand what they were saying.

“Yes, and _if_ they are willing to follow pack traditions and learn our ways. We do not wish to push pack members away.” She replied.

Cas looked at Dean for a moment before looking back at Reeva. “If Dean can shift, and I could shift as well, we would be welcomed here?”

“If you could shift as well, then yes. Because if you both can, then your children can.” 

Cas looked shell shocked. To know that there could have been a safe place all along for him, a place outside the rules and social structure that existed within the cities was both surprising and painful to learn this many years later. Now the issue was whether or not he could even shift at all. He knew pups started shifting early on, sometimes when only a few months old. Would his pups be able to do it though?

“I’m from the Preston pack.” He said. Reeva and Giselle both sat up a little straighter hearing that.

“I too am from the Preston pack. What are your mother and father’s names?” Giselle asked.

“Formal names are Charles Novak and Naomi Preston Novak. The Novak name we were unable to trace, but Preston is a pretty big name from what I’ve managed to learn.” He replied.

“And you would be right. The pack is almost as large as the Winchester pack. Naomi...was her father Theodus?” 

Cas thought for a moment. That name sounded familiar. Really familiar.

“I think it is. And my grandmother was Iona. Possibly also from the Preston pack.”

“I know of whom you speak. Theodus was the son of an elder, expected to take on his father’s role when the man could no longer act as council, but he was a headstrong pup and an even more stubborn man. He left with his mate, if I remember correctly. She was with pup at the time. I don’t know how many pups they had once they left, but I know they returned with the first few when they were little. Naomi was, if I remember correctly, their first born pup. There was a Daniel and a Jeremiah as well. Iona was pregnant with her fourth pup the last time I saw her.” Giselle said. “I was just a pup myself at the time.”

Cas was excited to learn about his ancestors, even if they weren’t from the Novak pack. 

“So, my mother, could she shift?”

“Yes, she could, as could her parents and both brothers. It is likely that you can as well.” Giselle said.

Cas weighed her words carefully. Dean could feel the emotions whirling through his mate and he reached a hand out, twining their fingers together and squeezing gently. This pack was linked with his mother’s pack. 

“My parents were not true mates. She has passed away.” Cas said. 

“I am sorry to hear of her passing. Your mother’s true mate was here, in this pack. She knew of him, but from what we were told later, she was sold to your father already pregnant with another Alpha’s pup. Her true mate would not take her, but your father did.” Giselle passed her empty bowl to one of the girls who hurried to collect everyone else’s. While she went to the kitchen to wash them, Giselle folded her hands neatly in her lap and looked at both Cas and Dean. She knew there would be questions.

“Do you know who her first pup was?” Cas asked.

“We understand that it was the offending Alpha, Luke.” Reeva replied.

“I only learned shortly after mating with Dean that Luke had a different father. My brother explained it that our mother was forcibly bred by another Alpha. I don’t know the details beyond that.” Cas said.

“The details of that were not shared with us either.”

“Is her true mate still here? Is he alive?” Dean asked. Everyone was quiet for a moment before Mordecai answered.

“He is away, on a hunt.”

Dean knew it didn’t matter who the man was, so he let the subject drop. Instead, he wanted to know more about the tea Cas was drinking his second cup of.

“This tea, it’s going to help to speed up the healing for Aidan? Will his asthma go away?”

“That remains to be seen. Some pups that are born early have this issue, and we have only lost a few. The rest grew up to be strong and healthy.” Giselle said.

“They’ve used natural medicines for centuries, babe. Aidan will be ok.” Dean lifted his mate’s hand and kissed the back of it. 

Molly was down on the floor, playing with a little corn husk doll that Mordecai handed to her and babbling happily. Ellie had escaped Mordecai and wandered over to see what her sister was playing with. Kate, Alex, and Evie were laid out on a big bear skin rug between Cas and Reeva, all three awake and quiet, which surprised their fathers. Aidan had dozed off in the sling but he was waking up. The way he was fussing told Cas the pup was hungry.

“I’m sorry, I need to feed him before he gets the others going.” He pulled the pup from the sling and reached for the diaper bag to fish out a receiving blanket. Some of the wolves, while in human form were walking around naked while others were lightly covered, including Reeva, Giselle, and Mordecai, but a lifetime in the city had left him with a need to cover up. 

“You don’t need to do that here. Feeding a pup is natural and not something to be embarrassed about.” Reeva told him. Cas paused in reaching for the bag. The only person he really permitted to see him nurse was Dean, but here he was, sitting in a room with four other Omegas and another Alpha besides his own mate. He might not need to feel embarrassed, but he did anyway. Not wanting to offend the elders, he managed to get his pup latched on as discreetly as possible without covering up. Aidan drank eagerly and soon the embarrassment faded away as the peace and contentment that he always felt when nursing his pups replaced it. 

“Dean, it has been many years since you walked around the village. I will take you now and show you how things have changed. There are many new faces that would like to meet you.” Mordecai said.

“I would like that very much.” Dean stood up as the other Alpha did. He understood what Mordecai was doing, and he appreciated it. He was leaving Cas with the other Omegas so that they might help to ease his mate’s embarrassment. With one last glance back at his mate who looked completely blissed out, he followed Mordecai out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So....there is a chance Cas can shift too. Chances are actually pretty damn good. The problem? Pups start shifting when they're roughly around Ellie and Molly's age. Cas is an adult and has never shifted in his life. What comes naturally to a pup (like learning new languages and absorbing information in general) is harder for an adult, so Cas would need practice. This doesn't mean that Dean is moving his family back to the forest. That would be an enormous adjustment for his entire family, but what it does mean is that he can bring his mate and pups back to run wild with the extended pack, and get back to their roots. Their pups are more likely to find their own true mates within the extended pack as well. And for Cas to have access to the knowledge the other Omegas carry would be highly beneficial to his own pups as they grown. To help them move past any allergies they currently have, and to grow up strong and healthy. Granted, this tea will not "cure" Aidan, it should help him heal enough that will no longer need oxygen, and will need his inhaler a lot less often. He'll always have asthma, but hopefully it will be easily controlled, and his food, chemical, and preservative allergies will disappear entirely. So yeah, I hope you liked this chapter. :)


	59. Settling In for the Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After visiting in the village Cas and Dean return to the cabin with their pups, and prepare for an early night. The wolves wake early to hunt, and they're expecting the pups to wake early.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is not exactly a filler, it's more that it gives an inkling as to how the forest pack takes care of even their extended pack, and the last bit is not quite as ominous as it sounds. I do hope you enjoy this chapter. :)

The sun was setting by the time they returned to the field to find not only Donna, but Jo waiting.

“Did you sit here the whole time?” Dean asked them.

Jo got to her feet and helped Donna up. “Yes, but the wolves brought us food and water several times. It wasn’t a bad wait. I actually enjoyed watching the young pups playing.” Donna said as she dusted off the back of her pants. “Though I think I might need a tick check later.”

Dean chuckled and with help from Jo got the twins back in their stroller. With everyone holding a pup, they headed back up to the cabin. The Alpha helped his mate get the pups all settled and in bed before heading down to the living room where Jo was waiting with Alan.

“So? Did you find out about Luke?” She asked.

“No, not yet. I will ask in the morning. Today was a big history lesson. I learned about my mother’s pack, and we learned some interesting information about Cas’ former pack. Apparently I shifted when I was a pup, like every time we came here. I think I’m starting to remember it, but I can’t be certain. And apparently Cas’ mom could shift too, which means he should be able to. He wants to try to.” He explained as he sat down on the couch.

“What if he can? What if you still can? Are you leaving the city?” 

“No, no, but we would definitely be spending more time out here. The city needs us. We need to keep making change and improving the lives of Omegas and Betas everywhere. I’m not going to abandon the good people.” Dean replied. Cas nodded in agreement.

“I know the city. It’s where I’ve lived my entire life. I don’t want to give it up, it’s my home, even as shitty as it is at times.”

Jo snorted but nodded. “Yeah, I have to agree with you on that one.”

Cas shifted uncomfortably. His breasts were full of milk and it was close to becoming painful. Dean could sense his mate’s discomfort.

“Honey, do you want to go pump and I’ll make you some tea?” He asked. Cas smiled and nodded.

“Yes, please. I’ll be down in a little while, please excuse me.” The Omega stood up and headed upstairs.

“Giselle gave us some herbs to make this tea for Cas to drink. It’s supposed to help Aidan. It’s in the breast milk and will help speed up the healing of his lungs. We’re really, really hoping it will get him off of oxygen.” Dean explained as he headed for the stove to start boiling the water. Being that this was a cabin, the living room and kitchen were all one space, and Jo simply had to turn and look over the back of the couch to see him.

“I hope it works. He scares the hell out of me every time he wheezes or starts that coughing. The first time his lips turned blue I about had a heart attack.” She admitted. Dean remembered that moment clearly. They’d had the pup home all of three days. That was the same day he called the hospital to get a referral for a private nurse. No way was he willing to try and handle that without medical assistance, or subject his poor mate to that kind of stress.

Alan had been quiet until that moment. “My third oldest, my daughter Sarah, she had breathing issues at birth too. Was in the NICU for the first month of her life as she was born eight weeks early. She still has asthma now at twenty seven. If this tea works, have your mate drink as much of it as he can stand. Your son, and the rest of your pups will all benefit greatly from it, but so will your mate.”

Dean put the filled kettle onto the stove and turned it on. Briefly he wondered who exactly had built this cabin, because they’d had the foresight to add a generator and electricity. It had to have been an ancestor.

“Anything that has the potential to heal my pup, I’m game to try. I just want him to grow up healthy and strong.”

“We all want that.” Jo said softly. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas came down an hour later with six bottles and the empty mug from the tea Dean had brought to him. He heated the water in the kettle again to make himself some more and stuck the bottles in the cooler full of ice that was sitting on the counter. 

“Where did the ice come from?”

“I sent one of my men to get some. We realized that we will run out of fuel much faster if we run the fridge too, so Dean decided that a cooler full of ice would work well. We’ll get more ice twice a day until you leave.” Alan replied as Cas joined them in the living room. They were all playing cards and he sat down on the floor in front of Dean. He leaned back and smiled when his mate kissed the top of his head.

“Feel better, babe?”

“Much. The feeling of being full is actually rather painful. I filled more bottles than I expected I would.” Cas replied.

“Is it weird feeding pups?” Jo asked.

“It’s...different, but not unpleasant. And I feel connected completely with my pups when they nurse. I very much enjoy feeding them.” Cas smiled softly just thinking about the smiles he had gotten feeding his pups earlier. He still marveled, even after all this time at how wonderful it felt to have his own pups, and a supportive, loving mate. His heart swelled as he turned to look up at his mate. He loved his mate more than anything in the world.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wolved came knocking around nine and Dean was pleasantly surprised to see that they had come with food. He graciously accepted it and carried it into the kitchen. It saved him having to figure out how he was going to cook for everyone. 

“Who was at the door?” Cas asked. He was just coming back inside through the back door. The cabin was updated to the point of having an electric pump to run water, and generator run electricity, but it did not have indoor plumbing. There was a small room on the second floor with a sink and a tub, but the tub had to be manually filled and drained. The outhouse was in back, and that was where Cas had been.

“Mordecai sent food for us.” Dean replied. It saved him from sending one of Alan’s men to go and get food.

“Oh! I am curious to see what they brought us.” Cas hurried to the butcher block island where Dean had set down several bowls of steaming food. It had taken him three trips to get everything brought inside.

“I will have to find a way to repay their kindness.” Dean said as he dished out food. The wolves were paying attention and had brought enough food for everyone. Donna had come downstairs after Cas had finished pumping and she wandered into the kitchen with Alan and Jo.

“Oh, this looks delicious!” She exclaimed as Dean handed her a bowl.

“So they seem to eat more vegetables than I expected.” Cas observed. His bowl was loaded down with some kind of meat, what looked like some kind of salad, and fresh fruit. He sniffed at the meat. “What is this? I don’t recognize it.”

Dean sniffed at the meat too. “It’s not venison which I know is a staple of the diet here. My guess is rabbit, maybe bear.”

Cas’ head shot up in alarm. “There are bears here?”

Dean chuckled. “There are bears throughout the entire state. You didn’t know that?” 

“No, I had no idea! Are the pups safe here?” Cas was now worried because Ellie and Molly had been off playing with other pups in the pack most of the day and not where he could easily see them.

“Babe, seriously? Even at home our pups are always supervised. There are always wolves on guard watching the perimeter. Pups are always safe here. The pack would die to protect them. Bears don’t stand a chance.” Dean replied. Cas relaxed and nodded. His mate was right.

“Where is the silverware?” Jo asked.

“You know they really only use spoons here for the soups and stews. Use your fingers.” Dean replied. He expected disgust and complaining from his cousin but she simply picked up a slice of carrot and popped it in her mouth. She returned to the couch where Donna and Alan were sitting and digging into their food. Cas picked up a chunk of meat and put it in his mouth. 

“Oh...this is good. Whoever made this used herbs. I can taste rosemary, and I think that’s marjoram. And there’s a few other things in there too.”

“I loved eating here as a kid. I think this is where Sammy got his love of rabbit food. See, after my mom died, my dad only brought us back maybe once or twice, until we went to live with Bobby and Ellen. Bobby and my dad share the same mother. Sort of the same situation as what happened to your mom with Luke. Anyway, technically this was not Bobby’s pack, but Mordecai welcomed him since he was the one caring for Dean and Sam, so Jo had spent time here as a kid too. She knew what the food was like here.

“Do they eat raw meat?” Cas asked. Dean looked at him for a moment as he tried to discern whether his mate was simply curious or actually disgusted by the thought. Neither his scent nor his emotions were clueing Dean in.

“Yes, when in wolf form. It’s natural.”

Cas nodded. “That’s what I assumed. I wonder what that tastes like.”

Dean shrugged. “If I ever ate raw, it was when I was really little, so I don’t remember. I do know that I like my steaks damn close to rare as it is. Always have.”

“I see the way you cook your burgers too.” Cas said, smiling around a mouthful of boiled potato. Dean grinned and ate a piece of the meat.

“Mmm, this is not rabbit.” He chewed thoughtfully for a minute. “I think…” He swallowed and ate another piece. “Yeah, this is bison.”

“It’s really good.” Cas said as he ate another piece. 

“It really is.” Dean agreed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean urged his mate to come to bed shortly after dinner was finished and they had washed the dishes. The pack woke at first light and went hunting, and the howling of the wolves would be ringing through the woods and the fields quite loudly before the sun was even fully up. He was expecting it to wake their pups and he wanted to get some sleep in before they all woke up. Jo and Donna were sharing a room and Alan had decided to stay in the living room on the couch. His men were in shifts, two awake, two asleep, so that someone was always on alert. The wolves wouldn’t let anyone on their land anyway, so if media or anyone else had followed, they’d be chased off. 

Or worse if they didn’t take the hint.

Sure enough, before the sun was more than a twinkle on the horizon, the wolves began to howl. It thankfully was not close and didn’t wake the pups, but Dean and Cas both were pulled from their slumber by it.

“That doesn’t sound like a hunting howl.” Cas whispered as he rubbed at his eyes.

“It’s not. Someone has died.” Dean was out of the bed and throwing on a tee shirt before Cas could react.

“Can you tell who?” Cas asked. He watched as his mate pulled jeans on in the dim light. Dean decided to forgo shoes.

“An elder from what it sounds like. I need to check on Mordecai and the others. Can you handle the pups when they wake?”

Cas nodded. “We’ll be fine. I have Jo and Donna to help me.” He looked over at the pack and plays where their pups were sleeping. There were four squeezed in side by side along the opposite wall. Dean looked over too, glad that the pups were still asleep.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He leaned over to give his Omega a quick kiss and then he was gone. Cas got up and went to the window. He watched his mate running across the field and towards the tree line. Two wolves appeared, flanking him and running alongside him. He really hoped Dean had misinterpreted the howls that continued to ring out across the forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mordecai, Reeva, and Giselle are fine. Fear not! I do hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	60. A Pup Scare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean heads into the village to find out who had died, and sees his former brother in law, Luke. The man is nothing like he had been, and it throws Dean a bit seeing how he is now. Feeling something was wrong and his mate was agitated, he returns to the cabin with Reeva to find that one of his pups is sick, but it's worse than they suspected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, little facts you'll hear in this chapter. 
> 
> One: Assassin or "Kissing bugs" are real, and apparently all over most of the US. They're nasty things. Here are some links if you want to look them up: 
> 
> http://kissingbug.tamu.edu/faq/
> 
> http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/chagas/gen_info/vectors/
> 
> Two: There are lots of critters in Kansas! Way more than I expected. Here is a site that will show the animals native to Kansas. And for the record? Just cause a site says an animal is not there doesn't mean it's not. I live in Indiana and according to state officials we do not have mountain lions (yet I know several people that have spotted them), we do not have bears (oh yes we do!!!! Black bears!!!), and we do not have wolves (YES WE DO! I know people personally that have seen them!!!!!), so I know they're making their way down into Kansas too, if they're not already there. 
> 
> http://kufs.ku.edu/media/kufs/libres/mammals_of_kansas/list.html
> 
> http://www.wildlife.k-state.edu/
> 
> So you know what Dean's extended pack would hunt. They would have a varied diet, and they would work to keep things in a perfect balance, never killing more than they needed to eat, so that they do not kill the ecosystem in which they live. It's all about the balance.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Dean reached the village in under five minutes and went straight to the middle where people and wolves were currently gathered. Mordecai and Giselle were standing near the center and the Alpha was speaking, trying to calm the pack.

“It was his time. We will mourn now, but we will honor his memory. Doricus, select six youths to go to the burial grounds and begin digging. We must bury him before other creatures begin gathering.” 

“Alpha, I will go!” A boy of no more than sixteen was raising a hand. Doricus, a tall and rather ominous looking Beta nodded.

“I volunteer as well!” A girl, an Alpha from what Dean could tell by her scent raised her hand as well. Doricus nodded to her as well. Four more teenagers, three boys and another girl were selected, and Doricus led them away. Briefly Dean wondered what they would be digging with since they had no tools in hand, but then it dawned on him. They would be shifting and using their paws. Mordecai spotted Dean and nodded at him, letting the Alpha know he had been seen and his presence acknowledged. Mordecai was giving more orders, for a feast to be given that night, and instructions were given regarding what to hunt for and what plants to harvest. The remaining wolves left and soon only the elders remained. Mordecai approached Dean and the younger Alpha quickly bowed his head in submission.

“We woke you, I do apologize for that.” Mordecai touched Dean’s shoulder to let him know he could look up at him. Dean lifted his head to meet the other Alpha’s gaze.

“Who passed away?”

“Elder Mercurian. Father of Eldrus and Nora. I believe you and Nora played together as pups.” Mordecai replied. Dean remembered Nora. Pretty girl with wild blonde hair and eyes that reminded him of the moss that grew on the sides of the trees. He’d had a crush on her when he was little. A flash of memory flickered, of chasing after a gray wolf pup, nipping at her back legs as they dashed over rocks and past the trees. 

“I remember Nora, and I remember chasing after her as we played. We shifted and ran through the trees.”

Mordecai smiled and nodded. “You are remembering. The way you and she played, we thought perhaps she could have been your true mate. She later presented as an Alpha though, as did you.”

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Dean asked. 

“No, young one. We are preparing for his burial this evening, however, if you and your mate would like to help with the food preparations later, it would be very much appreciated.” Giselle said. Dean nodded.

“We will be here to help.”

“Tomorrow we will discuss shifting, if that is something you and your mate are still interested in.” Mordecai said.

“It is.” Dean lifted his head and scented the air. Something had the wolves agitated. “Is there more going on than just a death?”

“Mercurian’s death was not natural, I am afraid. There is a hunt going on for the murderer. We will find them, they can’t have gotten far.” Mordecai replied. Dean bristled hearing that. He hoped he was not the cause of a pack member getting killed.

“And it’s certain that Luke did not do this?” He asked. Reeva smirked. 

“It most certainly was not Luke. Come, I will show you the Delta.” She started walking and Dean quickly followed. He was surprised to hear her refer to Luke as a Delta. Deltas did not exist within the cities and they were all but gone in the old packs. To be a Delta meant to be the lowest member of a pack, and it was usually reserved for those that were considered unfit for breeding, or unable to breed at all, but it went beyond just that. They were the ones that would betray a pack or prove themselves to be useless or purposefully disconnecting themselves from their pack. It was liking being back in school. You had your popular crowds, your crowds that were just trying to survive while still contributing to society, and then you had the losers that no one wanted to associate with. They were society’s leeches, the ones that tried to milk the system and take from it without giving anything in return. That was where a Delta fit into a pack, and they were usually ostracized and forced to make their own way. It was how the first cities were created. Sure, they didn’t function well in a pack, but on their own, when push came to shove, they could do something.

Near the edge of the village, just before the treeline was a roughly made wood fence. Dean remembered as a pup being told to stay away from this place. Reeva stopped at the fence and pointed down at a hole in the ground. It was covered with a wooden lattice style gate that was latched shut. 

“He is down there.” She motioned to a man that Dean realized was a guard and watched as the man unlatched the gate and pulled it back. Dean moved closer and looked down. He had expected something like the holes he had seen in POW movies, where soldiers were captured and held in holes in the ground, sometimes for years on end, but that was not the case. The walls had been shored up and smooth stones served as the floor. It was wider at the base, so there was not only a bed down there but a table and a chair as well. His brother in law was sitting in the chair, reading a book. It was actually a nicer setup than some prisons. Luke’s eyes widened when he realized who he was looking up at and he quickly closed the book. 

“Dean? Is that really you?”

Dean’s jaw clenched several times as he tried not to get so angry that it would affect his mate. He didn’t want to stress Cas out and make the man come looking for him.

“It’s me.” He replied.

“He is treated well.” Reeva said. Dean nodded. He could see that.

“How do you keep the rain out? Does it not flood down there?” Dean was curious about that.

“We designed the cell so the land slopes away and in foul weather, we cover the tops of all of them.” She replied. As Dean looked he noticed this was not the only covered hole. There were at least ten. 

“Was he actually punished?” He asked.

“He was and still is being punished. He has been castrated and every day he works from sun up until sundown in the fields. In the winter he is tasked with catering to whatever chores Omegas in the village might have. The only reason he has not been put to work today is because we are preoccupied with Mercurian’s death, but tomorrow you may see him around the village.” 

Dean looked down at Luke again. The man sure seemed different. The contempt and hatred was nowhere to be seen. In fact, the man seemed downright docile.

“H-how is Sam? Is he well?” Luke asked. 

“You don’t have the right to ask about my brother.” Dean snapped. Luke immediately dropped his head in submission.

“I-I realize that. I was just hoping that what I did hadn’t left permanent damage.” Luke’s voice was weak, pathetic really. Dean wished he could catch the man’s scent so he knew whether he was being sincere or not.

“Sam is well. Married, mated, and with a pup of his own now. He is very happy, and loved deeply by his mate.” 

Luke looked up then, a sad smile on his lips. “Good, I’m happy for him.” He appeared thoughtful for a moment. “It’s nicer here than I expected. I was raised to believe that an Alpha is supposed to dominate their mate. I was taught that they were your property, to be treated as such, and I did that because it was what was expected of me. Even though I left home, changed my name, and tried to put the Novak name behind me, I still turned out to be as evil and terrible as my dad. I’m ashamed of how I treated Sam, and how I have treated other Betas and Omegas. I see now how a pack is supposed to work. I never felt like I was part of one growing up. I am not part of this one now, though I wish I were. My true mate is here. Do you know the irony in that? And she is ashamed of me, won’t come near me, and whenever I am with the Omegas, cleaning or performing whatever chores they need completed, she will not come around me. I don’t blame her.” Luke looked away, his expression actually sad. “I couldn’t be a proper mate now, even if I wasn’t being punished. I will never have pups of my own. I don’t deserve them. She’s set to mate the son of one of the elders in two weeks, I was told. I’m...happy for her.”

Dean was having a hard time not feeling bad for the man. Was he even still an Alpha at all? He turned to Reeva. “With a castration, does he still experience ruts?”

“Yes, but they are very, very mild. He simply gets a bit irritable for a few days, and then it passes. Mostly though, he is unaffected by Omegas in heat. He is able to work alongside them before, during, and after without it triggering a rut.” She explained. 

“And he will live out his life here?” Dean wanted to make sure Luke was not going to be released.

“He is not leaving. Ever.” She confirmed. 

“I need to get back to my mate. I can feel his worry and I believe the pups are stressing him out. He needs my help.” He turned away and the guard lowered the cover on Luke’s cell once more.

“I will go with you.” She said as they fell in step with one another. 

As they walked to the cabin they talked about many things. She was curious about politics and how he was the one in charge of an entire city.

“Is it not difficult? They are not all your pack, so what are they to you?” She asked.

“It’s not pack mentality in the city for most people. For my family though, it is. We are a very close knit pack and we work together as a team to raise all of the pups, even though we don’t all live in the same house. I have goals though. I am trying very hard to make life in the city better for Betas and Omegas, and to raise their status so that Alphas will once again see them as equals. Right now, any unmated and unclaimed Omega is sent to the Omega District. That is where my mate was living when I finally met him. It’s why I never met him before he went to work at the bar for my aunt, our paths just never crossed. The District was a horrendous place where Alphas would force the Omegas to have sex against their will, and many Omegas starved to death. If you had seen my mate before we met, you would have been furious. I know I was. He was so thin and sickly. He’d been slowly starving to death. I knew I had to make a difference, so I started investing time and money into fixing The District up. We got rid of the Alphas that were making life a nightmare for the Omegas living there, and we repaired all of the housing, lowered the crime to almost nothing, and brought in businesses to help boost the economy. The streets are monitored and we offer training for Omegas so they can learn important skills to get jobs to care for their families. It is a much, much different place than it once was.” Dean pulled out his phone and brought up the pictures he had taken early on of Cas, of The District, and then he showed her the changes that had taken place since he began the revitalization project. 

“This is why I became mayor, and Cas and me, we have a plan. We don’t want to help Omegas just here, we want to help them everywhere. So I will run for governor, and I think I have a fairly good shot of winning. From there, we’re going for the senate and then for president. Cas believes in me, and if he believes in me, I have to at least try. As president I’ll have more power to enact new laws to give equality back to Omegas all over the country. I want a safe, equal place for my children to grow up in. I for sure have one Alpha pup, but the rest of my daughters are all going to be Betas or Omegas, and I won’t stand around while people tell them they’re not good enough. They can do anything an Alpha can.”

Reeva smiled up at him and he could see the pride in her eyes.

“You are a good man, Dean. A good Alpha, but a good man in general. You care so deeply. I think that if you were here, Mordecai would choose you as his successor.” She looked thoughtfully out across the field as they made their way to the cabin. “I think that the rest of the world needs you more than you are needed here. Equality is a given here. The rest of the world needs to be reminded that we are all equal.”

Dean couldn’t help but preen a bit under her praise. Earning the praise of an Alpha was not always easy and he wanted to take extra care not to disappoint any of them. They reached the cabin and went inside. Cas was pacing the living room, rocking a fussy Evie while Jo was entertaining Aidan and Kate in their seats. Alex was on his belly on the floor in front of the fireplace, one of the thick blankets Cas had brought with underneath him. He was reaching for the toys someone had placed on the blanket in front of him, cooing and gurgling excitedly. It made Dean smile to see his pups so happy. Alan was sitting with Molly in his lap and she was playing on a tablet. Ellie was on the couch with a soft book, flipping through it and talking to the pictures. Dean liked seeing most of his pups happy. It looked like Evie was the only one fussy for once. Usually she was the calm one. 

“What is the matter with the pup?” Reeva asked as she walked over to Cas.

“She woke up whining, and hasn’t stopped. She won’t nurse either.” He was stressed more than he was letting on, Dean could sense it.

“What did she eat?” Reeva scented the pup, her brow drawing lower as she frowned. “She smells wrong. Something is the matter. May I?” She asked, holding out her arms. Cas passed his daughter to her and put his hands on his hips as he watched her check his pup over. Reeva took the pup over to the blanket where Alex was lying and laid Evie on it. Immediately the pup began crying. She stripped the pup down and the crying turned to soft whimpers once she was free of the clothing and diaper. She lifted the pup up and cradled her as she checked her over. Her frown deepened and her scent was beginning to alarm all of the adults in the room. Dean and Cas were immediately at her side.

“What’s the matter?” He asked.

“Your pup is sick. She has been bitten many times. We need to check the other pups.” She replied.

“Bitten by what?” Cas asked as he flipped Alex over and stripped the pup’s clothing off. The tiny red marks that littered Evie’s body were sparse on Alex, but they were there. Dean went immediately to Aidan and began checking him. 

“Aidan only has a few as far as I can see.” He announced before he began checking Kate. Jo stripped Ellie’s sun dress off and gasped. The little girl had a dozen or more bites all over her chest and back. 

“Molly has them too.” Alan simply had to pull the collar of the pup’s dress back and he could see the red marks. Cas pulled his own shirt up and saw the bites on his belly. They were on his arms and legs too. Dean found that he had them as well.

“What are these?” He was getting worried now.

“I am not sure what you call them. We refer to them as the death bug, or assassin bug. They are parasitic.” Reeva explained. “When they bite humans, they’re drinking blood, but to have many bites can make a person very sick. For a pup, it can be fatal.” She turned to Jo and handed the pup to her. “Come, I need to check the rooms. I believe at some point someone left the windows open and they came inside. For there to be this many bites, and to be on all of you, that means there is an infestation here.” She said. Dean frowned. He knew about assassin bugs. They had been bothersome on camping trips, and on trips out here when he’d been just a pup. If he remembered correctly, they were nocturnal. And that too many bites would flood the human body with a toxin that would make them very sick. Poor Evie had what looked like dozens of bites. He hoped it wasn’t really that many.   
Reeva headed for the stairs, Dean and Cas following close behind. She followed the scents of the pups to the bedroom where they were staying with their parents. Immediately she went to the bed and flipped the mattress. Black bugs began to run and Cas cried out in horror. Dean put an arm around him and held him close. 

“They are a menace here. We keep chickens, frogs and small lizards in the village to help combat them. The trees in and around the village, and that we make our homes out of help to repel them. We must get you and your pups out of here.” She dropped the mattress and caught a few that tried to fly away, crushing them in her fists. Her reflexes were stunningly fast for a woman closing in on seventy. Dean released his mate and hurried to check the pack and plays. He shook everything out, stomping the few bugs he found, and folded the portable cribs up. Cas was glad their luggage was kept closed tight, though he intended to check it all in depth later. They carried everything back down to the first floor.

“Are we leaving?” Donna was just coming in from the outhouse and was looking at the portable cribs and luggage they carried.

“No, we have a bug infestation. Have you heard of assassin bugs?” Dean asked.

“I have, they also are called Kissing bugs. The pups were bitten?” She immediately went to check on them.

“We all were bitten. Evie is very sick.” Cas went to his pup whom Jo was trying to coax into drinking from a warmed up bottle. She was finally drinking some, but she was still fussy. Cas took her back, cradling her naked body to his chest. She continued to fuss so he forced his own self consciousness aside as he sat down in the chair opposite Alan and pulled his own shirt over his head. Evie calmed down as her skin pressed against her father’s, and her fussing became soft whimpers as she nudged her nose against his bra. He pulled it up and she immediately latched onto one breast. Alan, Jo, and Donna politely averted their gaze and busied themselves with checking for more bugs. The couch was infested too, which made Dean shudder. Cas’ attention was focused on his pup who was looking up at him with large, deep blue eyes. She was so beautiful, so perfect. Most of the pups still looked like him and he hoped at least a few would change a bit and look like Dean. Kate’s hair had darkened and her eyes seemed to be changing to more of a blue green as she got bigger, though she was still quite blonde. Dean thought she looked like his mother, but when Cas looked at Kate, he saw Dean. She was gorgeous. Evie sucked greedily and Cas stroked his fingers down the side of her face as she ate. 

“This didn’t work earlier. I think she needed the physical contact. There were too many clothes before.” He said.

“Skin on skin contact is vital for the healthy development of pups, and for sick pups so they can heal quickly. You are already soothing her just with your touch and scent.” Reeva explained. “I will go and call others to help.” She set down the bags she had been holding and went outside. A moment later they heard her howling. Molly looked up, smiling. She lifted her head and did her own little howl. She smiled cheekily up at Alan who grinned back.

“Good job!”

Dean laughed and helped Jo move all of the pups, save for Evie, into the strollers. 

“I’m going to go see if my men got bitten up too. I’ll be back in a moment.” Alan went outside and Jo went upstairs with Dean to check their bags and pack hers and Donna’s belongings. Donna went around to each pup, checking the bites, fretting over the fact that she had mistaken it for heat rashes. When Jo brought her bags down she grabbed the first aid kit she had brought and went back around to each of the pups, applying an antibiotic ointment to the bites. Jo helped and when Reeva walked in a little while later with four more people, they helped get all of the bags and the strollers outside.

This time, with everyone in tow, security included, they returned to the village. It was not even noon and already Dean was exhausted. Cas could feel his mate’s exhaustion and once they were settled in at one of the few empty dwellings, he moved to soothe his Alpha. When Dean sat down after checking the pack and plays again and setting them up, Cas went behind the chair and began massaging his mate’s shoulders.

“What are you doing?” Dean turned his head a bit so he could look up at his husband.

“You’re tired and stressed out. I’m trying to help, so turn around and relax.” Cas replied. Dean smiled and turned back around. Slowly the tension began to bleed out of his body and he relaxed completely. Jo, Donna, and several older pups from the village helped Reeva to get the younger pups settled. Molly and Ellie were ushered outside to run and play with pups their age, and Dean didn’t even care that they were dressed only in their diapers. Reeva spoke with Jo and Donna for a moment quietly, and whatever she said, they were both agreeing to it.

“We are going to take your place with helping to prepare the dinner feast. Mordecai has ordered you and your mate to relax here until you are called for dinner.” Jo said to Dean. He arched one eyebrow as he looked to Reeva. She nodded.

“Mordecai wants you both to relax and get some rest. If you need help with the pups, someone will come when you call.” 

Dean smiled and nodded. “Thank you.”

A few minutes later Dean found himself alone with his mate and four sleeping pups. When Cas had finished his massage he went to sit in one of the other chairs but Dean caught his hand and pulled him around to sit down in his lap. He wrapped his arms around his Omega’s waist and leaned his head against Cas’ stomach.

“Are you tired, darling?” Cas asked.

“Yes. But I’m a bit worried about Evie. I’m glad you got her to eat.” He looked past his mate at the pup who was still naked and sleeping in one of the pack and plays. Cas had put two open diapers under her, and under that, a waterproof pad. Just in case she peed. The red dots that littered her body made it look like she had the measles, and it pained Dean to see his little girl like that. Her little face was angelic, so sweet as she slept, no hint of the pain she had been in earlier. He wasn’t sure he’d have gotten any sleep that night worrying about his pups getting bitten again if they'd had to stay at the cabin. He despised assassin bugs. They had flown in his bedroom window when he was a kid and growing up, he and Sam had always endured a few here and there in the warmer months. It had never been this bad though. “She’s going to be alright, isn’t she?” He lifted his head to look at his mate.

“Reeva says yes. We got her out before she got any more bites. I can smell that these houses are made from cedar. They smell good. Cedar is a natural insect repellent. We will be crowded, but we’ll all be safe here.” Cas ran his fingers through his mate’s hair and kissed his forehead lovingly.

“I think I want to lay down for a little while, take a nap until one of the pups wakes us.” Dean decided.

“I will lay down with you.” Cas stood up and waited for Dean to stand as well. Once he was, he led Cas to the ladder that went up into the loft. From up there they had a view of the main room and all of the pups. In this particular dwelling there were two lofts, and if they looked straight across they could see the other one where Donna and Jo would later sleep. Dean stripped his jeans off and laid down. Cas had put his shirt and bra back on before they’d come here, but he took a moment to take them off before stripping his own jeans off. He wanted to be close to his mate. 

“Take your shirt off.” Cas said as he tugged on the corner of Dean’s shirt. Dean obliged and then laid down on the soft mat that served as the bed. Cas laid down, pressing his back against Dean’s chest and sighing with contentment as his mate wrapped his arms around him and pulled him closer. Dean’s nose buried in Cas’ neck and it wasn’t long before his breathing evened out and he drifted off. It took Cas a little while longer to fall asleep, but eventually he did as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Evie will be ok. With advanced healing abilities and Cas' milk, she'll be better by the following day, so don't fret too much. Exciting things coming next chapter, and some smut cause I think we're pretty long overdue for some, lol. I hope you liked this chapter!


	61. Returning to Nature

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day is spent in the village, interacting with their pups and the rest of the pack, and Cas finds himself growing more and more comfortable all the time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here's a nice, long chapter since I promised the smut would be in this chapter, and then I realized it should have been in the NEXT chapter. Whoops! I do hope you enjoy this one though. :)

Their nap was short lived as they soon had four crying pups, all begging to be fed. Castiel had Alan fetch the cooler and Dean heated bottles while his mate got started nursing. Each pup was nursed enough to tide them over until Dean could feed them more via the bottles. After diaper changes and cuddles, the pups were laid out on the rug on the floor where they all promptly rolled onto their bellies. Pups from the pack wandered in and out to play with them, and Dean relaxed with his mate, content to just enjoy the afternoon. 

Giselle returned with meat that had just come in from a fresh kill and with Cas’ help they prepared it for lunch. Just as Mordecai was coming back for lunch, Jo came running in and she was extremely excited.

“Dean! Cas! You have to come see Ellie! Come on, quick!” She cried. Cas wiped his hands and hurried over.

“She’s ok, right?” He asked as Dean came over too.

“She’s better than ok, she _shifted_!” 

Dean and his mate were both shocked. 

“Would it be alright if we left the little ones here for a few minutes?” Cas asked, directing the question to Giselle.

“Of course. Go and see your other pups. These ones will be perfectly fine.” She shooed them out the door and Dean grabbed his mate’s hand as they ran after Jo towards the center of the village. As they approached they saw several pups playing, all in wolf form. They nipped and chased after one another. 

“Ellie!” Dean called out. A beautiful pup with a thick brown and white pelt snapped her head up, her blue eyes spotting him quickly, and then she was running over. He knelt down and soon had an excited wolf pup in his arms, squirming and licking his face before dropping to the ground and rolling over for a belly rub. Cas was in awe, amazed that this was his daughter, a child he had delivered, shifted into her natural wolf form. He knelt down next to Dean and buried his fingers in her thick fur.

“She’s so beautiful.” He murmured. Dean grinned as he tickled his daughter.

“If I can remember how to shift, and you learn to shift too, we can run these woods together, exploring. It will be wonderful.”

A second pup came over and as Dean caught its scent, he gasped in surprise.

“It’s Molly! She shifted too!”

Molly’s fur was a different shade of brown than her sister’s, but no less beautiful. Cas lifted her up and nuzzled her. She whined excitedly and licked his face.

“Will she know how to shift back?” He asked.

“It will come automatically to her. At this age, they just have to think it and they’re doing it. When she gets a little older we’ll be able to tell her she needs to shift back and she’ll do it. Our work will be cut out for us once we’re back home. I expect that she will shift a few times at school and freak out her teachers, before we can teach them when they can and can’t shift.” Dean explained. Cas let Molly down when she started to wriggle in his arms and he watched her run back to play with the other pups. Ellie soon chased after her.

“Molly had not shifted when I came to get you. This is so exciting, I can’t wait to tell my mom!” Jo was happy for Dean and Cas, and for their pack. She could shift, but hadn’t done it in a few years. Her mother had come from a small pack further south and had been able to shift all her life. She hoped Dean and Cas both could shift so they could all run together. For several minutes they stood and watched as their daughters played. Suddenly Cas had a million questions. He turned to his mate and decided to just ask them.

“Could our pups have been born already in wolf form?”

Dean gave a strange little head tilt as he nodded. “I’ve heard of it happening. If it had, they’d have been much easier to deliver because they’d have been basically the size of puppies. It’s rare though since it takes a conscious effort to stay in wolf form. I don’t think it has happened in several hundred years.”

“What if they shift at home? Do we have to worry about the dogs?”

“Nah. The dogs know all of the pups scents. I think they’d just play with them and be even more protective than usual.” Dean replied.

“Are there laws against shifting within the city limits?”

“Not to my knowledge. Most people in the cities don’t shift anyway. I think it would come in very handy for Omegas that are being harassed or assaulted by Alphas though. In wolf form, they’re much stronger, able to fight off Alphas. Especially if the Alpha is still in human form.” Dean smirked.

“When I...killed...Alistair, was I going to shift?” Cas was wondering about that. He’d heard that his fangs had elongated and his nails had come out, something that had never happened before that day, and hadn’t happened since, though he had felt something changing once when he got really upset a few months back. It had felt like things were...moving, deep inside his body.

“I honestly don’t know. It would have been one hell of a sight to see if you had. Though I wouldn’t have wanted to try and calm you down in your wolf form. That thought actually scares the hell out of me.”

Cas had more questions but he decided to save them. As they watched, Ellie shifted back. Her little naked body was dusty and dirty but he’d never seen his child happier. She was still running around playing. Several other pups had shifted back too. 

“Should we cover her up?” He asked Dean.

“No. Nudity is not frowned upon here. It’s perfectly natural. I don’t want to teach our pups to be ashamed of their bodies. It’s the first step towards not shifting. Let her be.”

Ellie ran over and threw herself at Dean who caught her and pulled her up into his arms.

“Daddy! I pay, Daddy!” She exclaimed.

“Did you have fun?” He asked, matching her excitement and making her smile brightly. 

“I ha fun!” She clapped her hands and looked over at Cas.

“I happy, Papa!”

Cas stroked her hair and just as she’d done as a tiny pup, she turned her face into his hand and sniffed it, scenting him.

“Lub ooo, Papa!”

“I love you too, princess.”

She squirmed to be let down, so Dean did, and she hurried back to be with the other pups.

“Her speech is getting really good.” Dean remarked after they had told Jo they were heading back to Mordecai and Giselle’s and they’d started walking.

“It really is. Molly’s too. I work with them but so does the daycare.” Cas said.

“I need to work with them more. I feel like I’m not pulling my weight.” Dean frowned. He didn’t want Cas to be the one that had to teach their pups everything. Cas slid his hand into his mate’s and leaned his head on his Alpha’s shoulder as they walked.

“Honey, you’re doing great. They do learn a lot. And don’t forget that in a few years you’ll have all of them under the hood of a car, learning maintenance and car repair. I will be standing by with my camera the day that happens.”

Dean chuckled. “I never want to be so busy with work that I neglect you or our kids. You guys are my everything.”

“And we know that You’re there when I need you most, and that’s what counts.”

“Dean, something just dawned on me.” 

“What’s that, sweetheart?”

“The girls are going to be two in just a few months. Has it really been that long since I had them?”

Dean withdrew his hand from his mate’s and put his arm around his waist, tugging him closer. “Ellen once told me that time moves slowly until you have children. I’m beginning to understand what she meant. I still remember the day they were born. They were so tiny and beautiful. And they’re changing every day. Ellie still looks a lot like you, but I see more of me in her all the time. Especially her attitude. And Molly is so much like you, babe. So sweet and gentle. I love our children and constantly marvel at how amazing they are turning out to be.”

Cas smiled. “As do I. I was worried when neither girl came out as an Alpha. I worried for their futures, for their safety once they are out from under our wing, but I don’t worry anymore. The city is becoming safer all the time, and all of the good you’re doing, it’s spreading like wildfire. I saw a recent report that said Alpha on Omega attacks are down by twenty two percent, _nationwide_. That’s amazing! And if you make it to presidency I know you’ll do everything you can to stop attacks completely.” He looked up at his mate and smiled.

“I have daydreamed about the idea that perhaps I have given birth to a future president. It would be a dream come true if one of our children was an Omega and became president.”

Dean grinned at the thought. “I would back them completely, emotionally and financially. I want our kids to reach for the stars, and beyond, and to take it for themselves.”

Cas smiled back at him. “I want that too.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They reached the house and went inside. Giselle had Aidan in her lap and was letting him taste some kind of soup or puree she had made. The pup wrinkled his nose as the new flavors slid across his tongue, but then he was opening his mouth for more.

“Do we need to be worried because of his allergies?” Cas worried as they took the plates of food that had been left for them and joined the others.

“I don’t think so. There are no chemicals here, no pesticides, no abnormal dyes, and nothing is genetically modified. The plants they grow here for food are the same plants they have grown for thousands of years. They harvest seeds at the end of the season and use those the following year. Everything here is healthy. If we keep going the way we are, I think the vast majority of his allergies will disappear entirely.” Dean sat down on the floor next to the chair that had been left for Cas, and waited until his mate sat so he could lean against his legs.

“The girls are well?” Giselle asked.

“Quite. They both shifted. We were witness to Molly as she shifted into wolf form, and Ellie as she shifted out.” Cas said.

“We will begin tomorrow morning to work with you both so that you might be able to shift too. It will further your bond with each other and with your pups to shift.” Mordecai said.

“I read something once, and I’m curious about it.” Dean wanted to know what was truth and what was myth. “Is is true that sex between wolves is more intense?”

Giselle giggled and looked at her mate who was grinning. 

“It is definitely intense, and incredibly enjoyable. Just be careful because you are more likely to impregnate your mate with a litter while in wolf form than you are in your human form. Not that you didn’t do that already. Twice.” Mordecai teased. Dean laughed at that.

“Yeah, we learned to be careful during his heat, and immediately after it.” 

“I want just one next time.” Cas said. 

“You wish for more pups?” Giselle smiled brightly at that.

“I told Dean I would like maybe a couple more, but not until these pups are old enough to go all day to school. I couldn’t handle more tiny pups right now.” Cas explained. She nodded in understanding.

“I have eleven. Were it not for my pack and their help, I don’t think they all would have survived. You are lucky to have a pack willing to help you.”

Cas felt blessed to have the pack he did. Even if they didn’t have the money that they did, he knew Dean’s family still would have stepped up to help. They were now as much his family as Dean’s, and he was thankful to have a pack to call his own. He’d been alone for much too long. 

With food finished, the pups from the day before cleaned up the dishes. Cas was content to listen to his mate talking with Mordecai. He ran his fingers through Dean’s hair as he talked and though his mate continued his conversation with the other Alpha, he could feel the way Dean leaned into his touch. A rumble of contentment bubbled up from his chest and he smiled as his mate heard it and turned to look up at him. 

“You happy, sweetheart?” He asked.

“Very. I enjoy spending time here. I wish to come back often, if that is alright with the elders.” Cas looked over at Mordecai and Giselle who both nodded.

“You and your pups are always welcome here, as are Samuel and his family.” Mordecai said.

That made Cas incredibly happy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next few hours passed in relative peace. So far, Aidan hadn’t needed oxygen at all and his allergies weren’t acting up. He had coughed a bit, but not enough to need his inhaler. Cas was drinking the tea constantly, so it was in his breast milk, and he was pleased to see his pup on the road to healing. For the most part, the pups lounged around in their diapers, clothing was cast aside, and they were happier for it. Cas made a mental note to leave clothing off all of the pups more often, except maybe for their diapers. Poop and pee were not something he wanted to clean up from the floors.

Everyone left to go and prepare for the feast that evening, save for Dean and Cas who were directed to sit back and enjoy the time with their pups. Cas got down on the floor, lying on his stomach and nibbling playfully on his pups’ feet while Dean found toys for them to play with as he held them. Ellie and Molly were brought back tired and a bit cranky, so Dean went to heat up some water to give them a bath. They were asleep before he was even finished drying them off, and he laid them in the portable cribs to nap. Jo and Donna floated in and out as well, checking to make sure Dean and Cas were ok with all of their pups, and Donna checked on Aidan to make sure he was breathing ok. His O2 levels were better than they had ever been in his life, and it brought her great relief. When evening came they were all called to come out for the feast.

The center of town was bustling with people. Cas found himself less bothered now by the sight of people walking around topless or naked. He even noticed several male Omegas, their breasts heavy with milk as they nursed their pups. Ever observant, he watched to see how their Alphas interacted with them, and he felt ashamed that he had so often pushed Dean away when he wanted to put his hands or mouth on the Omega’s breasts. Here, Alphas openly touched their mates, showered them with love and attention, and the Omegas did not push them away. The evening was hot and to make it worse, they were sitting around a bonfire. The sweat dripping down the back of Cas’ neck was bad enough, but it was pooling under his breasts and he felt like he was suffocating in his shirt. He turned to his mate and handed Aidan to him.

“Hold him? I need to take my shirt off, I’m sweating to death.”

Dean was more than a little surprised, but he said nothing as he took their pup. He watched as his mate stripped off his sweat soaked tee shirt and sighed with relief. Since they had woken from their nap Cas had gone without a bra and now he was sitting here, with the rest of the pack, wearing nothing more than a pair of loose fitting shorts. Dean reached across the bond, trying to determine his mate’s real level of comfort, but he felt nothing but contentment and joy. Cas reached back to take Aidan again before leaning into Dean. Having his mate so close had Dean scrambling to remove his own shirt. Once it was off he sighed with his own contentment at having skin on skin contact. He peered over his mate’s shoulder to see Aidan happily babbling. Clearly having his skin pressed against his father’s was doing wonders for the pup as well. 

There was dancing done by some of the older pups, and all six of their pups were riveted as music played and people swayed to it. The food was delicious, a variety of meats and vegetables were served, with fruit served for dessert, and the wine flowed freely. Around midnight, Dean decided to head back to their dwelling. Some older pups had come hours earlier to take their children back for bed, and Donna had gone with them. Jo, as Dean had observed, had an Alpha lingering nearby, trying to catch her attention. He recognized it as a mating ritual. The Alpha brought her food and drink, and anything else she needed. Dean pointed it out to Cas who actually giggled at how flustered Jo seemed. She wasn’t pushing the Alpha away though, which meant she liked him. She actually stayed behind when they left, which further amused both Cas and Dean. 

“Everyone stayed asleep?” Cas whispered as he walked in. There were three Omegas, granddaughters of Reeva curled up sound asleep around their pups on the floor. Donna nodded.

“They’ve been little angels, and Aidan’s oxygen levels before bed were within reason. This makes it officially twenty four hours that he has gone without needing oxygen or his inhaler. And Evie’s bug bites are healing up nicely. She didn’t fuss at all today. None of the pups did, actually.” She whispered. Looking past them she noticed Jo was not with them. 

“She is being wooed, at the moment. We’ll see how she feels about the Alpha soon enough.” Dean joked. Donna giggled quietly.

“I’m happy for her, she’s a lovely young lady.” 

“We’re going to get some sleep.” Cas said as he started for the ladder to the loft. Dean was eager to follow his mate. Cas was still wearing nothing but those shorts and he was hoping his Omega would forego those too.

“Goodnight.” Dean told her. Donna nodded and headed for the opposite loft.

Once they were up in their loft, Cas pulled the cord that kept the curtain pulled back and let it fall down to block out the main room. There was a window up here that opened out but he was afraid to open it and let those bugs in. He was hot but worse than that, he was horny. Having so much access to skin on skin contact with his mate had basically started a low burning fire in him all night, and Dean had not held back with the touches and gentle caresses. He’d held Cas as they watched the dancing, his fingers brushing up and down the Omega’s arms, occasionally leaving tender kisses on his neck and shoulders. He had somehow managed not to leak slick but it was threatening now to come out in rivers if he didn’t have Dean’s hands and mouth on him soon.

As Cas watched, Dean stripped out of his pants and underwear. His cock, even soft was quite impressive and as Dean was folding his pants and putting them in the corner, his head snapped up and he scented the air before turning around to look at his mate. Cas had already stripped out of his shorts and slick was slowly oozing down his thighs as he knelt on the mat. His cock lay hard and heavy against his stomach and the sight was enough to make the Alpha growl as he crawled over and scooped his Omega up. Cas gasped as Dean laid him out and buried his face between his leg. Cas whimpered softly as Dean buried his tongue deep inside and practically drank from him. The Omega’s thighs quivered as he attempted to hold them up in the air but soon Dean’s face reappeared, and he was kissing and nipping at the soft skin of his mate’s thighs.

“Dean…” Cas whispered, trying hard to be quiet and not wake their pups. If ever there was a time that he was grateful for their soundproofed rooms back home, this was it. He missed them terribly as Dean kissed and nibbled his way up Cas’ body. The Alpha stopped, hovering when he got most of the way up his body and Cas was determined that from here on out, he wouldn’t push his mate away. Reeva had explained that Alphas were even more sexually attracted to their mates during and right after they’d had pups and the hormones an Omega secreted when they were nursing or full of milk was like an aphrodisiac to their mate. It triggered want, but it also triggered a fierce need to protect their mate and pups. At least now he knew why Dean was so obsessed with his breasts. He no longer saw himself as ugly when his breast hung heavy with milk. Instead, he was grateful for the ability to feed his pups, and for a mate that saw him as beautiful. Gently he brought a hand up to the back of his Alpha’s head and guided him down to his left breast. The pleased rumble his mate made excited him and he purred in contentment as his Alpha nuzzled and licked at one leaking nipple. He could feel how pleased and loved his mate felt in that moment, and he was glad he’d been able to make his Alpha feel that way. 

This was probably the happiest moment of Dean’s life since they’d had their pups. His mate was allowing him to be close, to touch him anywhere he liked, and he was almost giddy as he darted his tongue out to catch a drop of the sweet milk that beaded on his mate’s nipple. The one place he always wanted to touch but had really only been allowed to do once since their last pups had been born was now basically open season. He squeezed one lightly, causing milk to splash across his tongue. His mate moaned and arched his back, and a new wave of slick began pouring out. Dean’s senses were overloaded and he tried to decide what he wanted to do most. As awesome as Cas’ breasts were, he moved back down the mat so he could slide his fingers inside his Omega’s tight, wet heat. The slick continued to spill and Dean’s hand was coated with it, but he didn’t care. He opened his mate up carefully before withdrawing his fingers.

Since their decision to wait after their last pups were born, Dean had been investing in condoms. They had a very active sex life but since he seemed to have the most fertile mate on the planet who was always up for sex no matter where they were, he had learned to carry a few with him at all times. He went to his bag which was sitting under the window and found them in the side pocket. He grabbed a couple and hurried back to his mate. Now he had to decide, did he want his mate to present, or did he want to knot him while Cas was still on his back. He decided to knot him on his back so he could continue to play with his mate’s breasts while they waited for his knot to go down. Cas watched him rip open the wrapper and stroke himself a few times before sliding the condom on. Dean grabbed his mate’s legs and put them over his shoulders as he slowly eased his way in. Cas grabbed onto the blankets as Dean began to move, and he did his best to stay quiet. He couldn’t do anything about the pheromones they were stinking the loft up with, but they could take the risk and open the window to air it out so it wasn’t unbearable come morning. As Dean’s thrusts grew faster Cas reached up to him, wanting his mate close when he finally came. Dean let Cas’ legs slide down and then he was leaning over his Omega, kissing him deeply as his hips snapped forward faster and faster. It wasn’t long before his knot started to catch. Cas wrapped his legs around Dean’s back and thrust his hips up just as Dean pushed in one last time, locking himself deep inside his mate. Cas whimpered and nuzzled at the mating bite on Dean’s shoulder, earning a growl from his Alpha.

“You’re so perfect, baby. I love you so much.” Dean lifted his mate carefully so they were lying on their sides, facing one another with one of Cas’ legs throw up over Dean’s hips. He played with his mate’s breasts as he’d wanted to do while they waited.

“Is that why you knotted me on my back? So you could play with my breasts?” Cas asked with a soft laugh. Dean let the nipple in his mouth pop out and he grinned.

“Heck yeah, this is like a dream come true. I told you, you’re beautiful, Cas. Especially like this.” Dean cupped his mate’s right breast in his hand and kissed it softly. “You’re so incredibly perfect.”

Cas sighed contentedly. He really did believe his mate. They laid there until Dean’s knot went down and he pulled out. He waited as Dean tied up the condom, which looked ready to burst, and set it aside to dispose of later. Not here though. They didn’t want to poison their family’s lands. Once Dean came back, he curled himself around Cas and held him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope you enjoyed the chapter. Dean and Cas are enjoying their visit very much.


	62. Hot Springs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas and Dean enjoy a lazy morning followed by a pleasant afternoon with their pups down at the hot springs. It isn't until they're on their way back to the village that Dean catches something on the wind. There are wolves in the area, and they are not from the Winchester pack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

The rest of the night was spent alternating between having sex, feeding pups, and sleeping. When Cas finally woke for the day he stretched, delighting in the way his body ached. They hadn’t made love like that in a while and it had been amazing. Fully opening himself up to his mate, and letting the man worship his body the way wanted to had opened up a whole new world for the Omega. He regretted ever holding back, ever doubting himself, ever finding himself unattractive and expecting his mate to feel that way too. The house was quiet. Too quiet. He sat up and cocked his ear, listening. Outside there came the sound of laughter, of children playing, but inside everything was silent. He pulled the curtain back and looked down at the sitting area where the pack and plays were standing empty.

“Dean, our pups are all gone.” Cas’ fear jolted his mate awake and Dean was on his feet a moment later.

“What? Pups gone?” He was still half asleep and trying to get his bearings but he dropped to his knees and leaned over to see the empty cribs.  
“Oh, I bet Reeva came and got them. Jo and Donna are gone too. They let us sleep in.” Dean dropped back onto the mat and stretched. The sound of laughter reached his ear and he sat up on one elbow to look out the window.

“Yep, found them.” He chuckled. Cas moved over to the window and looked out, smiling when he saw his older pups running around a blonde wolf. “I’m going to bet that’s Jo in wolf form.”

Cas was surprised by that. “She can shift?”

“Yep. She used to run with Sammy and me when we were pups. She spent more time with our pack here than with her own. It’s one of the reasons I embrace Ellen and Bobby in our pack. They stepped up and took me and my brother in when we were at risk of becoming lone pups. Jo is my sister, just not by blood. I feel the same way about Charlie. Now she would be a lone wolf if I hadn’t brought her into our pack. Her mother died a long time ago, and she never knew her father. No siblings, aunts, uncles, nothing. She was my best friend, so I brought her into my pack. The elders here, they have been doing that for centuries. The Winchester pack is really blended and diverse. I love that.” Dean laid back on the mat and stretched. Cas did the same, except he curled himself around Dean, throwing one leg up and over his mate’s hip.

“You ready to get up?” Dean asked.

“No. I want to just be lazy in bed for a little while. Tomorrow we go back to our lives again and I’m going to miss this.” Cas sighed. He missed lazy mornings sleeping in with his mate, before pups and politics got involved. Not that he regretted his pups, because he absolutely did not, nor did he regret his mate getting into politics because they were making a serious difference for Omegas and Betas everywhere. He was determined not to be selfish and hoard his mate to himself, not when so many people needed him. But moments like this, when he could have his husband all to himself, they were the most special moments of all.

Cuddling turned to sex again, not that Cas was complaining, and by the time they came down, dressed only in shorts since the day was warm, they were in need of a bath and food. They made their way to the center of town where Reeva, Giselle, and others were all going about their daily business. 

“Did you sleep well?” Reeva asked when they walked over.

“Very well. We just want to go wash up. I think at this point our kids probably need a bath too.” Dean chuckled.

“The little ones are getting a bath right now, actually. Your Beta, Jo is running with Molly and Ellie in the field. Your guard, Alan? He and another of his men went with to guard them. There are other wolves with them.” She turned to Cas. “Do you feel better, young one? You seem much more relaxed. It is good to see you like this.”

Cas smiled and nodded. “I do feel better. I need to nurse my pups though, before I explode.” 

Reeva laughed and pointed towards the treeline at the back of the village.

“There is a hot spring that way. You will find your pups there.”

Dean thanked her and they started walking.

“I like this, being free, not constantly having to worry that another Alpha might jump me and hurt me, or that our pups are in danger. The fact that everyone works here together makes raising pups so much easier. Life is easier here. Safer.” Cas found Dean’s hand and linked his own with it as they walked along.

“Omegas that are without their own pups pitch in to help those that have pups, so the mothers don’t get overwhelmed. In ancient times, if a mother wolf couldn’t comfortably raise all of her pups she would push the weakest ones out of the den where either other childless Omegas would take them or they would die. Childless Omegas began stepping in to help with caring for the pups so entire litters could survive. When my parents came with us, my mom always had help. We were surrounded by loving, caring Omegas. My mom was calmer for it, and happier.” Dean pointed ahead. “There’s the water. Now, the Omegas will be naked in the water, and they may fuss over you, and possibly me. It’s not a mating ritual, it’s just pack behavior. A pack takes care of each other. I’m just warning you now.”

“I’ll be ok. As long as no one tries to mate with you, I’m perfectly fine.” 

They stepped into a clearing and in the water sat a half dozen Omegas, four of which were holding their pups. Cas smiled when he saw how happy his children were. Aidan was gurgling happily as he splashed in the warm water and it got his brother doing it too. Kate was watching her brothers with a gummy smile. Evie was asleep in the arms of a girl that had to be roughly thirteen. Dean stripped out of his shorts and Cas followed suit. The water felt wonderful as they carefully stepped down into it. Cas immediately waded over to Aidan whose eyes lit up at the sight of his father. He whined and reached for Cas who immediately took him into his arms.

“Were they good for you?” Cas asked. The girl nodded, smiling as Aidan immediately began rooting around for a nipple so Cas got him latched on.

“They like the water.” The girl said softly.

“They enjoy their baths at home too, though I don’t often get to bathe them all at once. This is nice.” Cas settled back against a rock as his pup nursed. Kate spotted him and began whining too so Dean picked her up, distracting her so Cas could finish with Aidan. Once Aidan was done, he handed her back to the girl and took Kate. She was even hungrier than her brother and grunted as she ate. Cas winced when she bit down a bit too hard.

“I think they’re going to start getting their teeth soon. She’s biting.” Cas tapped his daughter’s cheek and pulled his nipple out of her mouth. “No.” He told her firmly. She looked up at him with wide eyes but she wasn’t crying. He allowed her to latch on again but the next time she bit down, he repeated his reprimand. Her lower lip quivered but she didn’t cry. The next time she latched on, she didn’t bite him, so he let her finish eating.

“You ok, babe?” Dean asked. He had Alex and was playing with the pup who was gnawing on his father’s chin. “I have to agree, I think they’re starting to teeth.”

“Yes. I believe Kate and I have come to an understanding. If any of them don’t want to be gentle and not use their teeth, I’ll have to switch to only bottle feeding them. I’m not going to be their chew toy.” Cas stroked the wet hair from his daughter’s forehead as she ate. Slowly her eyes began to close and her sucking slowed down. When she had fallen completely asleep Cas’ nipple popped out of her mouth and her little head lolled back, her mouth slack. She looked even more like Dean in that moment. One of the other Omegas, a young man that Cas could see was mated stepped forward to take Kate and Dean handed Alex over. The process repeated until all four pups were fed and content, and the pressure had been relieved in Cas’ breasts. The two Omegas without pups in their arms brought a cloth and some kind of natural soap and proceeded to wash Cas down. He purred contentedly, relaxing as they washed his hair and body before moving on to Dean.

“Thank you, girls.” Dean told them. 

“You are welcome, Alpha.” They said in unison. When they were done, Dean laid back, closing his eyes as he floated. The sun was warm on his face and he knew he’d have some sunburn later, but he didn’t care. When a hand splayed across his belly a little while later he opened his eyes to see his mate standing there. The water was deep enough that it came up to Cas’ chest, and it was indeed very warm water. It felt so good though.

“They’re going to take the pups back and put them down for a nap.” Cas said. Dean nodded and let his eyes close again.

Cas laid back in the water, taking one of Dean’s hands so they stayed close. Others came and went but when they heard a couple of splashes and then wolf pups nudging at them, they both stood up. The scents told them it was their own pups, Molly and Ellie.

“Hey there my sweet girls.” Cas laughed as the puppies whined and pushed their way into his arms, both trying to lick his face at the same time. He nuzzled each of them before looking up to see a large blonde wolf and an even larger nearly black one frolicking a few feet away.

“That’s Jo and the Alpha that has been courting her.” Dean said to his mate. 

“Hi, Jo.” Cas called out. The blonde wolf looked up, lips pulling up in a wolf’s version of a smile. She chuffed air out of her nose in greeting before turning back to the other wolf who was doting on her, nuzzling and licking at her ears.

“He is really intent on getting her attention.” Dean mused as they watched Jo and the other wolf for another minute or so before turning back to their own pups. Dean had scooped up Molly who was draped across his arm, her paws dangling in the water, her head resting in his hand. Cas was doing the same with Ellie. The pups were exhausted from playing hard, so as they dozed, Dean found the soap that had been left behind and proceeded to wash both pups. As they finally fell asleep, they shifted back. They were larger, more awkward to hold in that position, so Dean hefted Molly up so that her head rested on his shoulder. Cas did the same with Ellie. 

They weren’t able to put their shorts back on with pups in their arms so they just grabbed them and started walking back to the village with them in hand. They hadn’t gotten very far from the hot spring when something in the air gave Dean pause and Cas stopped as well.

“Dean?”

“Shh. Someone that doesn’t belong is here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I left you on a cliffhanger! I did that on purpose! Chime in and let me know whether you would like to see Dean and/or Cas shift in the next chapter. I'm still undecided on which direction I want to go with that. So let me know what you think. I hope you liked this chapter!


	63. The Intruders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Winchester pack is under attack, though Dean has no idea by who. All he cares about at the moment is finding his mate and pups. When the threat grows closer, Dean's memories of shifting return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here you go, the second half of the cliffhanger I left you with on Wednesday. Enjoy!

Cas fell silent as he moved closer to his mate. Dean was on alert as something moved in the distanced, branches cracking.

“Is it a wolf?” Cas whispered. Dean’s head snapped around as the sound of twigs snapping grew closer. 

“It’s not from our pack.” Dean hissed. He snarled as he handed Molly to his mate and pushed them behind him. They were still too far from the village for anyone there to hear them, but they were still pretty close to the spring…

“Jo! Jo! Come here!” Dean yelled as loud as he could. The movement was growing closer but the ground thumped with the sound of wolves running and a moment later Jo and the Alpha were there.

“There’s someone stalking us, that way. Not from this pack.” Dean pointed and the Alpha raised his head to howl. It woke both pups who startled awake and looked up at the wolf. Before Cas could stop them they were shifting. Jo gave a soft bark to them and with Cas following behind, they raced for the village. 

“Do I need to stay?” Dean asked the black wolf, It gave a quick jerk of its head in the direction of the village, and Dean took off running, following after his mate. He passed a dozen or so Alpha wolves that came at the sound of the alert, and he was relieved that they had heard the call for help. As soon as he reached the village he went in search of his mate. With so many wolves now running around on high alert with the new howls that were coming in, he couldn’t catch his mate’s and it was stressing him out. He raced for the house his family was staying in and rushed inside but it was empty. His next guess was Mordecai’s, so he headed there, only to find it empty as well.

“You are looking for your pups and mate, they are in the village hall. All Omegas with pups have been sent there.” A girl stopped long enough to tell Dean. He turned and raced for the hall which was back at the center of the village. When he arrived he found the building filled with Omegas and pups, and he didn’t immediately see his own mate.

“Cas!” He turned a full circle before he spotted Alan. Cas was scared, he could feel it, but he couldn’t tell if it was being projected by him or something his mate was feeling. He wove through people and wolves until he reached Alan.

“Where’s Cas?” 

Alan pointed to a blonde wolf that was sitting with a group, including Dean’s mate and all six of his pups. Cas was sitting on the floor, leaning back against Jo and trying to contain Molly and Ellie. The Omegas from the hot spring were sitting with him, and they were holding his other four pups. Dean hurried over and dropped to his knees. Cas threw his arms around his mate’s neck and hugged him.

“They’re saying the village is under attack! There’s a nomadic pack traveling through the area and that they’re responsible for killing Mercurion. Everyone is being called except those of us with pups. Mordecai said I had to stay here. Dean, I’m scared!” 

Dean hugged his mate as his daughters jumped around and wrestled next to them, still in their wolf form. 

“Shh, it’s alright. I wish I remembered how to shift, I’d be out there helping the rest of the pack.” Dean sat down and Cas curled up next to him. Molly shifted back and crawled up into Dean’s lap.

“Hi, daddy!” She gave him a toothy grin as she settled down between her fathers.

“Hi, baby. Did you have fun?” He asked her. She nodded.

“I has fun!” She lifted her head and gave a little howl that had the people around them all chuckling. Ellie shifted back and crawled into Cas’ lap. 

“I seepy, papa.” She yawned.

“Of course you are, baby girl. Come here.” Cas lifted his daughter up and she laid her head on his shoulder. There was too much activity for her to drift off easily but after about twenty minutes she grew heavy in his arms and he lowered her so that he was cradling her instead. Molly was yawning in Dean’s arms, her head laying against his chest as she rubbed at her eyes. Somewhere outside wolves were howling, and it sounded close by.

“Where’s Donna?” Dean turned to his mate and asked.

“She was helping Reeva with a wolf pup that was attacked. I think she’s acting as a medic right now, helping as best she can.” Cas replied. The howling was getting louder. A woman at the other end of the room suddenly screamed, causing the entire room to fall silent as all heads turned to look at her.

“What’s happening?” Cas cried. Dean could feel his mate’s fear growing again and he placed a hand on his Omega’s leg.

“Her mate died. I don’t think they were true mates, but it’s still exceptionally painful to lose a mate.” They watched as others hurried to catch the woman before she fell. She was clutching at her chest, sobbing and crying out in pain, and it was scaring Cas terribly. He whimpered and buried his face against Dean’s arm. The howling outside grew louder and Dean was pretty sure it was right outside the hall doors. Those in wolf form, Jo included, moved to block the doors in case something unwelcome should enter. Cas gasped and pulled back, looking up at Dean in surprise.

“Dean! Are you shifting?” 

Dean looked down at his arms which were rippling and held out one hand, watching as the fingers shortened and the claws elongated.

“I am!” He passed Molly to Alan who had come over and turned to Cas. “Undo my shorts, quick!”

Cas hurried to undo his mate’s shorts and as Dean stood up, he pulled them down his legs. He barely got them off before his Alpha was dropping to all fours in full wolf form. The Omega gasped and looked up at the enormous wolf before him.

“Dean, you’re beautiful.” Cas ran his fingers through his mate’s thick silvery, white fur, marveling at how gorgeous his mate was in his wolf form. Another young Omega girl approached and he nodded for her to take Ellie. He stood up and moved around to stand in front of his mate.

“Dean, I don’t want you going out there.” 

The wolf snorted and shook his head. Cas could feel his mate trying to soothe him across their bond. Wolves howling outside made Dean’s ears perk up, his green eyes looking to the doors. He cocked his head, listening. When something thumped against the side of the building, Dean growled low in his throat and nudged at Cas until he moved back. Cas understood, Dean was trying to protect him and their pups. He was frustrated though, and felt vulnerable at not being able to shift. Dean’s hackles were raised and Cas could feel how tense his mate was. It made his entire body tingle and when something else crashed against the side of the building he found himself growling, his entire body tensing. A brief pain in his groin made him yelp and when Dean turned to look at him he noted the surprise in his Alpha’s eyes.

_“Babe, you shifted!”_

Cas didn’t hear the words with his ears, which was strange. It was more that he felt them. He looked down and saw that yes, he had indeed shifted.

_“How did I do this? And how am I talking to you right now?”_

Dean chuckled. _“You wanted to shift, so you did. Now I remember what I used to do. It’s conscious thought. You tell your body to shift and it does. How do you feel?”_

Cas huffed and licked at his muzzle. _“It’s very strange, but not uncomfortable at all.”_

 _“I like being in this form. It’s freeing. And so you know, it’s easier to feed the pups in this form. They’ll still recognize your scent, but you have extra nipples now.”_ Dean said. Now that he mentioned it, Cas could feel the extra nipples. In fact, they extended clear down his belly, almost to his groin.

_“I’ll keep that in mind. Maybe lay across our bed at home and nurse them all at once to get it done and over with.”_

Dean snorted and licked his mate’s muzzle. _“You’re gorgeous like this. The fur on your belly is white but the fur everywhere else is not quite black, it’s like a dark gray. But your eyes are even bluer. I’ve never seen a wolf even half as beautiful as you are. It will be interesting to see what the rest of our pups look like in wolf form. Because now we know they all can shift if they try.”_

Cas sat down next to his mate and listened to the sounds outside. In this form everything was louder, clearer. There was a fight going on right in the center of the village, and he heard several familiar voices, including Mordecai’s. The elder was barking orders at wolves from their pack, and from what it sounded like, the last of the other packs were being dispatched. The Winchesters were winning. 

_“Does this happen a lot?”_ Cas asked.

 _“No. As far as I know, there have been packs that have passed through this area over the centuries, but only a few that have been stupid enough to challenge our pack. This pack was desperate, hungry, and had they won they would have killed everything, leaving the forest empty of all food sources, so even if our wolves would have survived after losing the initial fight, they would have died of starvation. This pack was strong but much fewer in numbers, and apparently not very good in a fight.”_ Dean’s head was cocked as he listened to the wolves outside. It sounded like a few had escaped and a hunting party was being formed.

 _“Will it be hard to shift back?”_ Cas asked. 

_“No. It’s easier to shift back than it is to consciously shift to this form. The real trick will be to do this again. You need to practice until it’s second nature. I think you shifted this time because I did. And that’s common. But you need to be able to shift without needing to do it because I did.”_

Dean could feel mate grumbling so he nuzzled against him and licked at his muzzle again. Cas leaned against Dean’s side, comforted by the scent of his Alpha and his warm fur. A thousand years ago this would have been how he found his mate. They would have been in wolf form, not human form, and the first mating would have taken place within minutes after first meeting. From there they would have began their life together, almost always with the Omega already pregnant. Actual courtship traditions began some time within the last millennia, and for those, Cas was truly thankful. Alphas began to court their potential mates, including their true mates, and Omegas were left with the decision to accept their mating request or reject it. Cas remembered the joy on his mate’s face when he had first accepted Dean’s mating request. Calmed by the memory, a deep, contented rumble rose up in his throat and Dean sat down next to him, his tongue lolling out of his mouth and making it look like he was grinning.

 _“You love me.”_ Dean’s tone, even in thought form was teasing but full of affection. Cas snorted and nudged his mate.

_“You know I do.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, the reason Cas felt pain in his groin as he shifted was because he was still wearing his shorts. He basically just shredded them, lol. I hope you liked this. There will be more next chapter with them still being shifted, as the invading pack is not yet fully under control. So stay tuned!


	64. Neutralized

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mordecai and the rest of the pack get the rogue wolves under control. There is much to do to repair the village, and the deal with the dead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like this chapter.

It was another half hour before the doors opened and people began walking in. Mordecai was in the lead, looking bruised and bloody, but accomplished. More wolves were filing in after him as well as many bruised and bloody people. The Omegas rushed forward to help care for the injured. Mordecai paused halfway to his chair and looked directly at Dean. He smiled and nodded when he noticed Cas sitting next to him. Dean nodded in return and watched as Mordecai went to his seat and sat down. Reeva appeared, slipping into the seat next to him. Slowly the rest of the council filtered in and took their seats. Mordecai raised a hand and the room fell silent.

“The invading pack has been neutralized. They are no longer a threat. Those that have survived are in cells, awaiting sentencing. I am too tired to hold council at the moment. We need members to take the dead wolves from their pack to the badlands. They will not be buried on our lands. We have suffered our own losses, so I will need members willing to prepare spaces in the burial grounds. Tomorrow we will take a day of mourning. For now, seek aid if you are wounded, check on your families, and those not volunteering to help with the transport or burials will begin repairs on anything damaged within the village itself. So move forward and get started.” He decreed. Everyone fell into motion. Mordecai rested his head in his hand and closed his eyes. Reeva was having a gash on her forehead tended to by another Omega. Dean was impressed, even the elders had taken part in this fight. If Cas had let him, he would have gone to help too, but he understood his mate’s fear. If Dean died, Cas would die, and then they would have six young pups left fatherless. He couldn’t be selfish and not think of his family. Jo came trotting back, nipping at Dean’s muzzle affectionately.

 _“Figured it out finally, I see.”_ She teased.

 _“Yeah, and so did Cas. Hopefully we will both remember later how to do it again.”_ He replied.

_“When are we leaving? I’d like to help with burying the dead. I don’t think there’s enough time to help drag bodies to the Badlands. Giselle says they’re almost a day’s walk from here. It’s a dead patch of earth where nothing will grow, and those not in the pack get left there. It’s where those that transgress against the pack will end up. Luke will go there when he dies.”_

Cas’ head shot up at the mentioning of his brother’s name. _“What’s that about my brother? Dean, did you see him yet?”_

Dean felt guilty about not telling Cas he’d seen Luke. 

_“Yes, I saw him. He is being well taken care of, but he has been punished, and is continually being punished.”_

_“That is a contradiction in terms. What do you mean he’s being taken care of but still being punished? That doesn’t make sense.”_

Dean could feel his mate’s irritation so he rubbed his nose against his mate’s throat. _“It means he is well fed, clothed, and has a space to call his own, but...they neutered him, and he is made to work for the Omegas. He is no longer an Alpha. He is a Delta now, lowest of a pack, but since he is not part of this pack, he is considered a lone wolf. He will spend the rest of his life doing the daily work that is assigned to him. He is humble and regretting the evils he committed against my brother, but it should not have taken this long for him to figure out how to be a decent person and treat a mate with love and respect. I can’t forgive him, Cas. He almost killed Sammy, and then came back to my brother’s freaking wedding, just to torment him. His mild nature now doesn’t make up for a lifetime of evil.”_

Cas relaxed and leaned into his mate again. _“I understand. I would like to see him again though, before we go home.”_

Dean wanted to refuse his mate, but that wouldn’t be fair. Cas didn’t know Luke the way he did. Luke had been gone by the time Cas presented and was kicked out of their family home so the Omega had never really known the true cruelty his eldest brother was capable of. Still, Cas had been cut off from his family for so long, it wasn’t fair to deny him that.

_“Ok, we will shift back and I will get permission from the elders for you to see him.”_

Cas seemed content with that answer. He laid down just as Molly’s eyes opened. She smiled as she climbed down from Alan’s lap and walked over. Her chubby little fingers buried themselves in his thick fur.

“Pitty Papa.” She cooed. He nuzzled her belly, huffing as she shifted and tucked herself against his side.

 _“You’re so pretty, Papa.”_ She sighed as she rolled onto her side. Cas was startled by how clear her speech was in this form.

 _“You are too, princess.”_ He licked her ears and heard her giggling. Communicating telepathically was fascinating and he wondered if it would be possible to communicate that way when out of wolf form. More than once he’d been pretty sure he knew what Dean was thinking. So perhaps it was possible.

 _“I’m hungry, Papa. I want something yummy to eat. Being a doggy makes me hungry.”_ She said. 

_“Do you know what you are?”_ He asked.

 _“Jojo says I’m a wolf puppy. I wanna be a big wolf doggy like you and daddy.”_ She replied. Cas snorted, drawing Dean’s attention.

 _“Hey, sweet pea.”_ He said.

_“Hi, Daddy.”_

Dean huffed in surprise and looked at Cas.

_“She speaks clearly like this.”_

Dean looked at his pup again as she wiggled around on her back, her little tongue lolling out of her mouth. She pawed at Cas’ muzzled and he chewed gently at them.

_“I’m going to go and help bury the dead. Before we leave I’ll take you to see Nick.”_

Cas looked up at Dean for a moment before giving a nod. He’d stay with the pups, it was clearly what Dean wanted. Not all of the invading pack had been captured yet. He watched Dean turn and trot off, following Jo and her Alpha suitor who had come to get her. Once they and more of the others had left to go tend to the dead he turned his attention back to his pup. He liked talking to her in this form. Hopefully he’d be able to communicate easier with his younger pups once they learned to shift too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean returned just before sunset, dirty, tired, and sore. He laid down at Cas’ feet and shifted back. Cas had received help from Alan, Jo, and several young Omegas to get the pups all back to the dwelling they’d been staying in, and when his mate settled with his head in his Omega’s lap, Cas ran his fingers through his mate’s hair.

“Are they all buried?” Cas asked softly. Dean groaned and flipped onto his back so he could look up at his husband.

“Yes. We didn’t suffer very many losses, but a lot of damage was done. I helped with some of the clean up. It wasn’t easy.”

“You’re not well enough to drive. I think I’ll have Alan drive. You can lay in the backseat and sleep. We’ll have extra space now that Jo won’t be coming back with us.” Cas didn’t want Dean driving in his current state of exhaustion.

“Jo’s staying?” Dean realized his cousin wasn’t in the house. She was probably still off with the Alpha. “What’s his name?”

“Cole. The Alpha’s name is Cole. I had a nice conversation with his earlier. He’s a good man. Young, strong, and he’s been looking for a mate for a while now, but he hasn’t found anyone that he feels he is compatible with. Until now. He says he feels great affection for her, and he finds her very attractive.” Cas snickered as he thought about the conversation he’d had earlier with the Alpha. Cole had stood tall as he professed his feelings for Jo while she had stood beside him, rolling her eyes and blushing like a schoolgirl. She had looked at him though with great fondness. It was clear she had feelings for Cole. When he had asked her to stay she had agreed without hesitation.

“I’ll have to tell her mother. I think Ellen’s going to take the news hard. She’s always wanted Jo to find a loving, good mate, but she always thought it would be with someone from the city, not from a forest wolf. At least Jo will be well cared for, loved, and accepted. I really don’t relish the thought of being the one to have to challenge someone to get her back if he turns out to not be good for her. I’m getting too old for that shit.” Dean groaned.

“I don’t think that will be a problem. I don’t get any bad feelings from Cole. Besides, he’s a nephew of Mordecai and Reeva. If he acts like an ass, I’m sure he’ll quickly be put in his place. Jo will knock him out if he tries.” Cas chuckled. Dean smiled and nodded in agreement. The door opened and Giselle came in, followed by several of the Omega girls.

“I have brought you more of the tea to take home with you. The next time you come back I will have more ready for you. Reeva is waiting to take you to see your brother, Castiel.” She nodded towards the door and after helping Dean up, Cas got up too. The girls were already moving to get the pups dressed, which was one less thing Cas would have to do later. He handed Dean the shorts he’d been wearing earlier and the Alpha shrugged back into them.

“Hey, why did you cry out earlier when you shifted?” Dean asked as they headed for the door.

“Oh, I didn’t realize what I was even doing in time and I couldn’t get my shorts off in time. It hurt as I burst out of them. My dick still hurts a bit from it.” Cas rubbed a hand over his groin, wincing at the bruised feeling. It would be gone by morning, he was sure, but for now, it felt like he’d been kicked, and it was not a pleasant feeling. Dean could feel the ache across the bond and grimaced.

“I’m sorry, baby. Maybe we’ll stick to track shorts, or sweatpants if we want to shift.” Dean said as he took his mate’s hand. Cas hummed in agreement as they stepped out into the warm summer night.

“You should take a quick bath in the spring before we leave. No offense, but you smell like death. I don’t think it would be good to ride home with that smell in the car. It will upset the pups.” 

Dean knew he smelled bad, but as he sniffed at his own skin he knew his mate was right. “You’ll come with me?”

Cas nodded. “Of course. We’re not mating though, we really don’t have the time to wait for your knot to go down, but I’ll take great pleasure in massaging some of your aches and washing you down.”

Dean was a bit disappointed at that but he understood. “I’m knotting you tomorrow, when I get home from the office.”

“No, you’re not, we have dinner with Alfie and Jude. Did you forget?” Cas smiled as his mate groaned in frustration. “Are you that horny?”

“I just want you, babe. I want to be inside you.” Dean whined. Cas chuckled and reached into his pocket to pull out a condom.

“I thought that might be a problem. I suppose we could be a little late getting home tonight.”

Dean grabbed his mate in a hug and spun him around as he kissed his cheek loudly. “You are the best mate in the world!” He cried. Cas laughed as he was set back down.

“Hmm, maybe. Or maybe I just know you that well.”

“Or maybe you want it too.” Dean nipped at his mate’s ear, making his Omega shiver. Cas grinned at him, his blue eyes twinkling in the fading sunlight.

“Maybe you’re right.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope you liked this chapter. :)


	65. The Visit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a minor scare when a reporter manages to jump their fence, Cas and Dean get a visit from Cas' brother Alfie and his mate, Jude. Dean is reminded of his deep love for his mate and children.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We have reached the end of the road for this fic. This is the last chapter. Now, that being said, there will be a couple of time stamps added on later, to follow up on Dean's political career, the pups, Cas' career, and the rest of the pack. Besides, I'm sure a lot of you are dying to know what the orientation of their pups are, and whether they go on to have any more. And how Aidan grows up. I know he stole a lot of hearts. These subjects will be touched on later on in time stamps. Thank you for sticking with me through this story, it has been an absolute blast to right. I love everyone that has been reading it and commenting, and even the silent readers. You all are fantastic. 
> 
> I do hope that you enjoy this last chapter, and see it for the beacon of light that it is.

The ride back home was exhausting for everyone involved. The older pups were cranky and fought against their fathers when they were dressed again, and the younger pups who had also basically gone naked all weekend fussed when they were all put in a tee shirt and diaper. Cas even found that clothing was somewhat annoying again, and he was moody as they made the trip home. After Donna had helped them get all the pups in the house and settled into bed, Dean left to call Ellen and tell her about Jo. Cas slipped into the shower and had just finished dressing when Dean came into the room.

“How did she take the news?” Cas asked as Dean started stripping down.

“She was shocked, then happy, then pissed, now she’s happy but crying for her baby. Our next visit, she wants to come with.” 

“When were you planning to go again?” Cas was hoping it would be soon.

“I’m not sure, baby. I have to check my calendar.” Dean looked at the tee shirt and pajama pants his mate was wearing. “You don’t want to sleep naked?”

Cas smiled as he headed for the bed. “I’m a little bit chilled tonight. If I get hot later, I’ll probably ditch the pants.”

Dean nodded as he tossed his jeans and socks in the laundry basket. He went into the bathroom and Cas heard the sink running, which meant the Alpha was brushing his teeth.

“Did you drink your tea tonight?” Dean’s voice was garbled around the mouthful of toothpaste, but Cas had heard him.

“Yes, I had about forty ounces worth. And I pumped. All the pups are asleep, and I don’t want to wake them.”

Dean came back to the bedroom, turning off both the bathroom light and the bedroom light as he headed for the bed. He crawled under the covers, and Cas immediately curled into his side.

“I made a mistake,” Cas said as he tilted his head back to look up at his mate.

“Oh? What kind of mistake?”

“The dinner with Alfie and Jude is not until next weekend. We’re grilling. I don’t know why I thought we were going to their house.” Cas sighed.

“You have a lot on your mind, honey. Hell, I was agreeing because I thought that too. I write it all down in my day planner, otherwise I don’t remember squat,” Dean admitted.

“Yes, I sometimes forget to write things like dinner with family down in mine. Or in my haste I write them down incorrectly. In my defense, though, I usually have a fussy pup in my arms as I’m trying to make the notes. I checked and tomorrow is the quads’ doctor appointment. Sam is supposed to go with me,” Cas said.

“It’s at five, right? I can meet you there by the time you’re ready to leave.” Dean had that written down, he was sure.

“I’d like it better if you came back here and got started on dinner so it’s ready by the time I get home. Gabe is going to have Molly, Ellie, and Henry. He’s picking up the twins at preschool so I don’t have to. Sam and I will just have the quads. By the time Gabe shows up with the twins and Henry, the pups will all be hungry.”

Dean nodded. “I can do that. I have a lasagna in the freezer. I’ll pop it in the fridge in the morning and then put it in the oven when I get home. That way the kids are all fed and ready for their baths before you get home with the little ones.” It was a fine ballet, handling six pups, but they managed it. 

“Sounds good.” Cas yawned.

“Goodnight, sweetheart.” Dean kissed the back of his husband’s neck, making his Omega sigh contentedly. 

“Goodnight, Dean.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The visit to the doctor’s office went much better than Cas had expected. Not only were all four pups healthy, Aidan had almost caught up in weight to his siblings. They were all rolling over and doing everything that was expected of pups their age, and most of Aidan’s allergies seemed to either be gone or under control. They got a clean bill of health, and Sam helped Cas get them all home.

Dean and Gabe were busy bathing Henry and the girls when Cas, Donna, and Sam walked in the door with the four pups. With his brother-in-law’s help, Cas got the pups into their high chairs and fed by the time Dean came downstairs. With his help the next set of pups were washed up and by eight, all of the pups were in bed. This was the night Sam and Gabe stayed over, so Henry was sleeping in another crib in the room with the twins. The house was silent and peaceful. They sat down to watch a movie together, and Cas brought up the coming visit with Alfie and his mate.

“So he’s bringing his mate over this Saturday? I wasn’t aware his mate was even pregnant.” Gabe frowned. He felt like he should have known that.

“He’s very protective of Jude, and even more so of their pup. It took them at least a decade to conceive her. She’s their little miracle, so they’re cautious about who they tell, and when. I think maybe they’re a little superstitious that they’ll lose her if they get their hopes too high and tell too many people,” Cas explained.

“That makes sense. I sort of felt that way when the adoption fell through with Garrett,” Sam said softly. Gabe put an arm around his mate and pulled him closer.

“It wasn’t your fault. It was no one’s fault. We couldn’t contest it when he had family still living. Besides, I think it fell through because Henry was meant to come into our lives. I love our son more than anything in the world, I really do.”

Sam smiled softly as Gabe pulled him close enough to kiss his temple. 

“You’re right. I love him so much.” His throat felt tight and he swallowed down the lump that had suddenly formed so he didn’t cry.

“I would like to meet his mate too,” Gabe said, turning his attention back to Cas and Dean.

“Apparently Jude is frightened of Alphas. He was harassed like me for years, except he was mated and still being bothered. He is extending an olive branch here by coming with his mate for dinner and agreeing to meet Dean. Once he realizes Dean isn’t like other Alphas, we can explain that neither are you and see if we can’t get him to agree to meet you too. Since we haven’t met him yet, we have no idea what he is like, or just how sensitive he is. I think a lot of it comes down to stress that comes along with a high risk pregnancy. They lost a pup a number of years ago and tried so hard for years since to conceive Dahlia. She’s their little miracle. I don’t think they’ll be having any more after her.” Cas didn’t want his brother’s feelings to be hurt, but he felt protective over Jude. As a fellow Omega, he wanted to make the man feel safe and welcome in his home.

“Yeah, I understand. Maybe after she’s here we can all get together,” Sam suggested. Gabe nodded in agreement.

“I would like to be a part of my brother’s life, and of his mate and pup.” Gabe smiled softly. “Dahlia is a pretty name.”

“It’s very pretty. And seeing Alfie and Jude, I think she’s going to be quite beautiful. Alfie showed us some pictures of his mate. Poor Jude looks ready to explode. Dahlia is expected to be around nine pounds,” Cas said. Gabe grimaced and Sam hissed.

“Ouch.” The Beta cringed, suddenly glad that he couldn’t carry pups himself.

“So once we see where we stand with Jude, we’ll see about getting you guys over too,” Dean told them.

“That’s fine. I look forward to meeting them though, and I can’t wait to meet my niece,” Gabe said. Cas smiled and looked over at his mate for a moment before turning back to his brother.

“And neither can we.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The week was long, but for Cas it was the best week he’d had since the quadruplets had been born. Aidan hadn’t needed oxygen since they had come back from the pack lands and had only needed his inhaler once on a particularly high pollen day. The doctor had put the pup on a low level allergy medicine, but Cas had held off on giving it to his son. So far, Aidan was doing quite well without it.

By Saturday morning Cas was worn out. The kids were running him ragged, and Molly had been getting into everything. She had managed to sneak past three adults and into Dean’s office where she had found one of her father’s red markers. Cas would have expected her to draw on herself, or maybe her siblings, but no, not Molly. She drew all over her father’s desk, computer screen, his office chair, the walls, and then had wandered into the den where she added more art to the television screen, the hardwood floors, the walls, and finally the couch, which was where she was leaving her mark when Ellen found her. After that, they locked Dean’s office, and Cas lamented how much it would cost to clean, repair, and replace everything. It was stressing him out, so Dean just called in a cleaning crew. The day after Molly’s need to express herself artistically, there were no signs of red marker anywhere. It took a load off the Omega’s shoulders, and he was incredibly grateful to his mate. 

Dean had taken the twins outside with him as he got the grill ready. The dogs went out too, and Cas busied himself with straightening up inside and getting the little pups all fed before their uncles arrived. When he passed the patio doors on his way to the table he nearly dropped the jars of food he was carrying. 

“Donna, take these please. Can you start on feeding them? I need to talk to Dean right away; the girls shifted.”

The nurse nodded, trying to hide her smile as she took the jars from him. He opened the door and stepped out onto the deck.

“Dean! My brother and his mate are going to be here any minute! I don’t have the time to get the girls washed up _and_ feed the little ones! They can’t be shifting and wrestling with the dogs!”

Dean looked up from the ribs he had been putting on the grill to see the dogs happily chasing after and playing with the two wolf pups. The girls’ clothes were strewn about the yard, and he groaned in annoyance.

“Molly! Ellie! Get over here, now!” he barked. The two pups looked up at him and then at Cas.

“Get over here now!” Cas demanded. The pups slowly started walking over.

“Shift back, now,” Dean ordered. Molly looked up, her ears perked and her head cocked. Even in wolf form she managed to remind him of Cas. 

“She doesn’t understand, Dean.” Cas scrubbed a hand down his face. The doorbell rang. He growled more out of annoyance than anything. “Get them to shift back, please. Now!” He turned and marched back into the house. Dean knew his mate wasn’t angry with him; he was just stressed out. When he looked back at the house he could see Donna trying to feed all four pups at once. Turning his attention back to his girls, he put his hands on his hips and looked at them with his sternest expression.

“You need to be little girls, not puppies right now. Do you want cupcakes later?” 

Both sets of ears perked up at the mention of cupcakes.

“Yeah, you heard me right. Papa wants cupcakes, so I made cupcakes, but only little girls get cupcakes, not wolf pups. You made Papa upset. Daddy doesn’t like it when you make Papa upset, so if you want princess cupcakes, you need to shift back. _Now_.” He waited and to his surprise both girls shifted back immediately.

“Go get your clothes. We are about to have company, and you can’t run around naked.” He watched them both run across the yard and collect all of the clothes they had ditched. Cas was not going to be happy with the grass stains. 

“Cupcake, Daddy?” Ellie asked as she ran over to him.

“You were good, you shifted back when I told you to, so after dinner you will get a cupcake. Come on, we need to get you some clean clothes.” He took Ellie by the hand and waited as Molly ran over. The dogs followed close behind.

“You, stay,” he ordered the dogs, and they both stopped on the deck as he led the girls inside.

“Oh, is this why Cas was so upset?” Donna asked as Dean marched the girls through the kitchen.

“Yes. Where is he? He didn’t come back yet?” He could feel his mate close by, but he didn’t hear him in the house.

“He went to answer the door,” she replied. Dean wished he had extra hands to help at that moment. 

“Girls, go sit at the table and wait for me,” he instructed. Molly and Ellie turned and went to Donna who set them in their high chairs.

Dean walked to the front door, frowning when he saw it was closed. He opened it and quickly spotted his mate across the yard at the gate, talking to Alan. 

“What’s going on?” he asked as he walked over. It was clear his mate was still irritated; he could feel it. 

“That was a reporter that rang the bell, Dean. They’re not supposed to be able to do that. So _why_ was one ringing the bell? That puts our pups at risk!” Cas was angry, and even Alan took a step back under the power of the Omega’s fury. Dean was angered by that too.

“How did this happen?” 

“We caught him, and he’s in our custody. The police have been called. We will keep this discreet. It would appear that an Omega jumped the fence. We found a garbage can pushed up to the fence. He managed to ring the bell, but just barely. I caught him as he pressed it.” Alan felt like he had failed Dean and Cas a second time, the first time being when Alistair had gotten his hands on the Omega.

“Where is he?” Dean asked.

Alan nodded towards the front gate where several of his men were gathered outside of it. Dean could see a tall man in cuffs with them. He opened the gate and stepped out. The man in cuffs perked up at the sight of him.

“Mayor Winchester!” 

Dean ignored him and turned to the men. “Did they give you a time frame for when they’d be here?”

“They dispatched a car immediately.” 

“Mayor Winchester-”

Dean turned around on the reporter, fangs bared and pure fury in his eyes.

“No, you do not get to address me directly! You came illegally onto _my_ property, endangered _my_ family! Upset _my_ mate! This is not acceptable!”

The Omega shrank back, his eyes and his scent filling with fear. Cas was suddenly at Dean’s side, gently touching his arm. 

“May I say something?”

Dean scrubbed a hand down his face and nodded.

“Go for it.”

He turned and went to wait by the gates while Cas turned to look at the reporter.

“What you just did? It was foolish. You may think that all you were doing was trying to ‘get a scoop’, but what you actually did was you managed to make me feel unsafe in my own house. You made me fear for my children, for my mate, and for myself, because if you could do this, so could someone else. And maybe all you wanted was a story, but maybe someone else will have a more sinister motive. As a report surely you have followed the story of my origins, the life I had before my mate found me. I was stalked and nearly murdered by an insane Alpha. That was before my children were born. Now that they’re here? The idea that someone else could get at me, at my _pups_ , all because of one thoughtless reporter, it’s terrifying! I am now going to insist that my mate add further protection against people like you, because I will not feel safe until he does. As a fellow Omega, you have to understand the position you just put me in. I am very unhappy, and very disappointed. If you think I would give you an interview after that stunt, or that my husband would, you are sorely mistaken. Your paper will be contacted and a formal complaint will be filed, both against you personally and against them. If we are harassed any further, there will be lawsuits involved. I do not ever want to see you again on my property.” Cas turned to leave but stopped when something else came to mind. He turned back to the other Omega. “Oh, and your name and picture will be collected down at the station, and you will be permanently banned from all future press conferences. I do not take the safety of my family lightly.” 

With that Cas marched past his husband and Alan, returning to the house. Dean saw the police car pulling up and breathed a sigh of relief when Jody got out.

“Dean. It would seem that our paths are crossing with much more frequency since you mated,” she joked. 

“Trust me, I wish it were under better circumstances,” he sighed.

It took ten minutes to fill her in and to pass along the orders that came down from his mate. Jody seemed none too pleased with the young man and ordered her partner to stick him in the back of their car.

“Don’t wipe your cameras. Keep at least three copies of the video of him breaking in,” she told Dean.

“And just to cover our asses, I taped Cas talking to him, in case he tries to cry wolf later. If he does, that will be slander, and I’ll happily pass all of that along to Sam,” he said.

She took statements from Alan and the rest of the security staff and just as she was pulling away, a little yellow Nova pulled up. Dean could see his brother-in-law Alfie behind the wheel. He motioned for him to pull into the yard. 

“Drive straight up and park in front of the garage,” Dean told him. Alfie nodded and did as told. “That’s my brother-in-law Samandriel Novak and his mate, Jude,” he told Alan.

“Want me to run a bomb check on the car, just in case?” Alan asked. Dean looked over to see his brother-in-law helping his very pregnant mate out of the car.

“Yes, in case someone knew they were coming.”

He crossed the yard, approaching slowly when he saw the wary expression on the Omega’s face. Smiling warmly he extended his hand in greeting.

“Hello, Jude, I’m Dean. My mate, Cas, is in the house with the kids. Do you need some help getting up?”

Jude’s expression relaxed and he nodded. “I’ve been having some issues with my knees and my belly is so heavy now that I need help getting up. Poor Alfie tries though.” He touched his mate’s face, and Alfie’s concerned expression melted away, turning to one of love and adoration. 

“I went through this with Cas too. Here, you reach under one arm, I’ll reach under the other. Lift on the count of three,” Dean said to Alfie. The other man nodded.

“One.”

“Two.”

“Three!” Together they hefted the very pregnant Omega to his feet. Jude sighed with relief and rubbed at his back before smiling at Dean.

“Thank you. And it’s nice to meet you, Dean. Did the clothes fit the pups?”

“Yes, and we’re going to have the kids’ pictures taken in them. Thank you for them,” Dean replied. Jude leaned heavily on his mate as Dean closed the car door and led them up the stairs and into the house.

“Babe? Alfie and Jude are here!” Dean called down the hall. Donna poked her head of the kitchen.

“He’s out back, working the grill.” 

“Crap! I hope the ribs didn’t burn,” Dean muttered.

“Daddy!” Molly came running down the hall, and he was so very glad to see her fully dressed in clean clothes. He scooped her up and turned so Alfie and Jude could see her.

“You didn’t get to meet the twins last week. This is Molly. Molly, this is Uncle Alfie and Uncle Jude.” 

His daughter looked shyly up at the other men. “Hi,” she said softly. Jude smiled warmly at the little girl.

“Hi, sweetheart. Aren’t you a beautiful girl?” 

She smiled at the compliment. “I pitty!”

“Come on, Cas is on the back deck. We have comfortable seating out there. I bought it when Cas was in so much pain and was on bed rest with our quadruplets.” Dean started walking, and they followed him into the kitchen.

“Where are the pups?” He asked when he saw only Ellie sitting at the table with Donna.

“Cas has Alex and Aidan outside. Evie and Kate are down for their naps. At this point the boys are probably asleep too. They were rubbing their eyes all through lunch,” she replied. Ellie slid down from the high chair when Donna removed the tray. She ran over to Dean.

“Cupcake, Daddy?” she begged.

“Did you eat your lunch?” he asked. She looked up at him with wide, hazel-green eyes and nodded. He wasn’t stupid though. Turning to Donna for confirmation, he waited for her nod.

“They both ate and talked about cupcakes. After Cas re-dressed them both.” 

Dean nodded. “Ok, then if you ask Donna nicely and go back and sit at the table, you can each have one cupcake.” He set Molly down and both girls danced around Donna’s legs as she got the cupcakes out of the fridge.

Dean went to the patio door and opened it. He motioned for Alfie and Jude to follow him out onto the deck.

“Babe? Alfie and Jude are here.”

Cas was turning over steaks but turned at the sound of his mate’s voice. He smiled as he closed the grill.

“Hi! It’s so good to see you!” 

He hurried over to hug his brother and then turned to Jude. “May I?”

Jude smiled wide and held out his arms. Cas hugged him as well as he could around his large belly.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Cas. Alfie speaks fondly of you and Dean both, but also of Gabriel and Sam. I hear they have a child as well, a little boy?” Jude asked as Cas stepped back.

“Oh, yes, Henry. He’s such a wonderful little boy. He has stolen everyone’s hearts.” Cas pulled out his phone as he helped guide Jude over to the chairs. With his mate’s help, Jude sat down. Cas held out the phone so he could see the picture of Henry with his his fathers.

“This is Sam, Dean’s younger brother. He is a Beta. Gabriel is our older brother and is an Alpha, as I am sure Alfie has told you.” Cas pointed the little boy in their arms. “And this is Henry.”

“He’s beautiful. Is he theirs?” Jude asked.

“He’s adopted. His mother was from The District, and she was murdered. He was going to be dumped into the foster care system, and we didn’t want that to happen. Gabe went down to talk to the agency and got the ball rolling to foster Henry, and from there they adopted him. He fits into the family so perfectly, it’s amazing. He’s a Beta.”

Jude cocked his head in confusion. “How do they know he’s a Beta?”

“Children that get put into the foster care system are screened via a blood test so they know where to put them. Omegas are sent to Omega orphanages because most people don’t want Omega children. My brother and Gabe have pledged to adopt Omega children. The whole thing with Henry was that Cas and Gabe were down at the daycare center the night Henry’s mother didn’t come to pick him up. Gabe was concerned, so I sent my security staff to look for her.” Dean was busy checking the meat and basting the ribs again as he talked. “Unfortunately, they found her already dead.”

“Oh! That’s awful!” Jude’s hand instinctively went to his belly. Cas understood his fear though.

“Hey, it’s ok. You and your mate are safe.” Cas found his free hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“I worry. Since The District has begun to improve so much, other areas of the city have begun to decline. The Alphas that stalked the streets of The District, they have taken to standing on the street corners around our apartment. Sure, during the day it’s fine, but at night I’ve been harassed more than once. I got jumped one night right before I lost my job, and if I hadn’t been carrying pepper spray I might very well have been raped that night. I could have lost my pup.” 

Dean had listened to his brother-in-law talking, and it bothered him to hear about the crime. The city was not perfect and he hadn’t been in office long enough to completely fix all of the problems that existed, but he had done a lot for The District and the effects had been profound. The Alphas looking for a quick lay, of course, hadn’t just disappeared completely. To get rid of them was to get rid of their superiority complex. That was going to take time. As he listened to his own mate talking with Jude and Alfie, he made mental notes of things he wanted to discuss with the city council and the governor. By the time he had all of the meat turned, Jude had his shirt pulled up and they were watching Dahlia moving.

“Wow, she’s active, huh.” Dean could see a little foot moving across Jude’s belly. The Omega smiled softly. 

“She has been like this from the moment I could first feel her moving. I love it though. The doctor says she’s growing perfectly and is very healthy. I can’t wait to hold her in my arms finally.” 

Seeing this kind of love and excitement from an outside perspective was quite different, and he liked being on the outside looking in almost as much as he did experiencing it with Cas. He looked down at his sons, both still asleep in their carriers under the umbrella so their tender skin would not burn, and he felt more love for them, for the rest of his children, and for his mate. They were his life, and the love that filled Alfie’s eyes, even after twenty three years with his mate, was not only beautiful, it was encouraging. Dean knew he would always love Cas, that was a given, but twenty, thirty, forty years from now he wanted to still see that light in his mate’s eyes, the one that told him that his husband, his mate, his Omega knew how deeply Dean was still in love with him, and that his love would never, ever end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope that you liked this chapter. Don't worry, I will come back to this! And I have more stories in the works, just waiting for their chance to shine. I'm not sure how many more WIPS I'll be writing. That remains to be seen, but more stories ARE coming, as are a couple more books. I look forward to seeing some of you commenting on future stories. You guys are the absolute best. Thank you for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Hello again my friends. We are back in the ABO world! Those that know me, they know I like to change things up a bit with each ABO I write. By that I do not mean switching who is Alpha and who is Omega, though this time you will notice I wrote Cas as the Omega. That was by popular request. What I mean is the dynamics behind the concept of true mates. This is a darker story in that Omegas are not seen as equals in society, and animal instincts play a bigger part in the bond between mates, especially true mates. I do hope you liked this chapter and that you will continue to read it. I like the Dean and Cas that I created here and I hope that you do too. 
> 
> Leave a comment, let me know what you think. We're in for another awesome ride!
> 
> Chapter updates for this one will be Sundays and Wednesdays. Sorry guys, not doing it every day, I'm trying to get another book published and am working on another book, so we're going to go a bit slower here. Don't hate me for it!


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